


Going In Blind And Unarmed

by plvvsh



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Angst, Crushes, Cuban Lance (Voltron), Explosion, Female Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, Fever, Graphic Injury, Healing, Hurt/Comfort, Infection, Japanese Shiro (Voltron), Keith is a Mess, Korean Keith (Voltron), Langst, Memory Loss, Multi, Mutual Pining, Pining, Samoan Hunk, Slow Burn, Swearing, Transformation, everyone is a mess really, loss of limb, loss of sight, maybe smut later?, probably, there's so much love
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-06-29
Updated: 2017-10-02
Packaged: 2018-11-21 06:19:29
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 19
Words: 28,646
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11351625
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/plvvsh/pseuds/plvvsh
Summary: This was supposed to be an easy mission. Lance was to accompany Pidge to a downed Galra ship to gather information, while Hunk, Keith, and Shiro were to search the jungle for signs of life. Things didn't turn out to be so simple. An explosion and a kidnapping leave Lance and Pidge gravely injured, and the rest of the Paladins stranded.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hi! My name is plvvsh! I'm new to ao3 as a writer, so I hope I can make things easy to read for you.

This was going to be an easy mission. Shiro had said that on their way to the lions, and Lance had believed him. He had really believed him. But when they entered the atmosphere, trouble begun immediately. The lions all started to shake violently and they crashed to the ground after shutting off. After a rough crash landing and establishing that everyone was okay, Allura determined that they should go ahead with the mission while she and Coran headed to a nearby moon to gather resources. So, Shiro sent Lance and Pidge to an old, abandoned Galra ship to gather information, while he, Keith, and Hunk set out into the jungle to find any signs of sentient life.  
So there Lance stood, outside of a Galra craft that was crawling with vines and bugs. It was a small craft, the doorway led into an open room that only had a large control panel in it. Pidge was inside, trying to activate that control panel. Lance tapped his foot on the ground, feeling bored and nervous at the same time. He peered around the doorway at Pidge.  
“Hey, how do you think we’re going to get off-planet?” He asked her as she typed. “I mean, the lions aren’t coming back online, why do you think that is?” Pidge’s fingers paused over the keyboard and she sighed, turning her head to look at Lance.  
“It must be the electromagnetic field that this planet has.” She said. He grinned at her when he noticed her irritated look. She was completely in the zone.  
“Sorry, do your thing.” He said, ducking back out of view.  
He leaned against the ship and hummed quietly to himself. He listened to the beeping inside the ship as he hummed, wondering what kind of information Pidge was gathering, if she had gotten any yet. The beeping was pretty rhythmic, but there were small pauses every few seconds when Pidge would stop to think about what to do next. Lance leaned his head back against the ship and waited and listened.  
Suddenly, the beeping got louder. At first Lance though Pidge had cracked the system and her typing had just gotten more forceful now that she was searching for information. But as he listened closer, he realized the sound was too methodical to be normal typing. He cautiously turned toward the door.  
Pidge made a choked noise that he thought sounded like his name, but then it was cut off by an explosion. Lance was blown backwards by the blast, since he was so close to the door. He groaned as he opened his eyes. His ears were ringing so loudly that he couldn’t hear anything. His left eye felt like it was on fire, and when he touched it, he could feel glass poking his fingers. He closed that eye and struggled to his feet, trying to figure out what had happened. He looked to the ship, only to see smoke bellowing out of the doorway.  
Pidge.  
Lance stumbled toward the ship, grabbing the doorway for support. The ringing in his ears started to fade and the smoke started to clear, although he was still getting a lot of it in his mouth and lungs. He coughed roughly, and looked around. Then he saw Pidge.  
She was lying on the ground, blood pooling around her. Lance shifted his gaze to the control panel, except there was no control panel. There were just bits of metal and glass everywhere from an apparent self-destruct. He snapped his attention back to his friend on the floor and ran to her side. He turned her over, and his stomach dropped.  
Her left arm had been completely blown off at the shoulder, where the remains of her armor were sparking. Lance whimpered and slapped a hand over his mouth, trying to suppress tears. His breathing became rapid and short, and he tried to take deep breaths. He gently patted Pidge’s cheek. She made a small noise as he eyes rolled open and closed. Lance sighed in relief, but he wasn’t done panicking yet. He had to figure out how to get her to the castle so they could try to help her.  
He wrapped her remaining arm around his shoulder and lifted her up as quickly as he could. Her head rolled to the side, landing to rest on his shoulder.  
“…Lance…” She said weakly, trying to make her legs work. Lance finally let a sob escape him, and now tears wouldn’t stop flowing down his cheeks and stinging the wounds in his eye.  
“Pidge, please, just hold on, please, it’ll be okay.” He whimpered, pressing his free hand against her gaping shoulder wound. He pressed hard, trying to slow the bleeding down. He couldn’t suppress a gag as he felt her bone. The young girl cried out in pain as the bone shifted under the pressure of his hand.  
“I’m sorry, I’m sorry. I have to stop the bleeding. Please forgive me.” Lance rambled, tears still flowing down his cheeks.  
The communication system in his helmet began to crackle, and Shiro’s worried voice came through the speaker.  
“Lance? What was that? I can’t reach Pidge, what’s going on?” He asked quickly. Lance let another sob escape him as he tried to answer, stumbling out into the open air.  
“Shiro, help! There was some kind of explosion in the ship, Pidge is hurt so badly, please, she needs help…” He panted out, realizing he was still hyperventilating. He heard noises around him and tried to walk faster, but Pidge’s efforts to walk weren’t very helpful.  
“Alright Lance, stay right there. We’re coming.” Shiro said, suddenly sounding like he was running.  
“Hurry! Hurry, plea—“ Suddenly something hit Lance in back, knocking him over and causing him to drop Pidge. His helmet flew off his head, and a foot held him down as he tried to get to Pidge. He craned his neck around to look behind him, and saw some odd looking aliens, which he assumed to be the natives. One was holding a spear, and the other two were holding scimitars. One of them moved over to Pidge, turning her over with its foot. It looked at the alien holding the spear and shook its head, and Lance assumed it was telling the other that his friend was basically dead. The thought made Lance’s heart sink.  
The alien holding Lance down suddenly lifted him up and started running off with him, followed by its friends. Lance twisted and screamed, trying to get out of the creature’s tight grip.  
“Let go! I have to… She’s going to die!! Please!!” He screamed at his captors. It was no use. They ran faster and farther away from his fallen friend, preventing any chance of Lance being able to help her. He hung his head in defeat, already beginning to mourn the loss of the green paladin.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Regrouping.

Keith stopped in his tracks, his foot getting soaked in mud. Hunk and Shiro continued to walk in front of him, and he assumed they didn’t hear what he had heard.

 

“What was that?” He asked, grabbing their attention. The yellow and black paladins stopped and looked back at him.

 

“What was what?” Hunk asked, seeming confused.

 

“It sounded like an explosion.” Shiro said. He clicked on his communicator. “Pidge, come in, are you and Lance okay? We heard an explosion.” He looked back and forth between Keith and Hunk with a look of concern crossing his features. “Pidge?” He asked again, in a tone that made Keith’s stomach knot with worry. “There’s just static.” He said softly and worriedly.

 

“Try getting to Lance, Pidge may just have taken her helmet off.” Hunk suggested, and Keith nodded in agreement.

 

“Lance? What was that? I can’t reach Pidge, what’s going on?” Shiro asked, nervously shifting his weight from one foot to the other. Keith could hear the blue paladin’s voice through the speaker, but trying to make it out proved to be impossible. He looked back up at Shiro, trying to search his face for any sign of what Lance might be saying.

 

Shiro’s face suddenly changed from mildly concerned to full out panicked. He pushed past Hunk and Keith and broke into a desperate sprint. Keith’s mind spun into a full panic as he grabbed Hunk’s wrist and chased after Shiro. Something was very, very wrong, and Keith wasn’t too eager to find out what it was.

 

“Alright, Lance, stay right there. We’re coming.” Shiro panted out as he ran.

 

“What’s going on!?” Hunk exclaimed, struggling to keep up with Keith. Shiro’s right arm started to glow.

 

“The explosion was in the ship they were hacking. Pidge is hurt badly, and Lance sounded desperate.” Shiro explained, while running towards the smoke rising up into the sky. Keith looked up at said smoke and bit his lip. He activated his bayard and hoped Lance and Pidge were still alive.

 

As the three of them ran, they quickly approached the ship that Pidge was trying to hack into. They had arrived in less than five minutes. There was smoke spilling out of the door and spiraling up into the sky. Shiro stopped suddenly, causing Keith to run into him before he could stop. Hunk was able to stop before hitting Keith.

 

“What is it?” Keith asked, barely above a whisper. He examined Shiro’s face as he stepped up next to him. The older man’s face was contorted in fear and concern. Keith followed his gaze and his heart flew up into his throat and he was suddenly struggling to breathe.

 

Pidge was just lying there on the ground, completely alone and completely motionless. Her left arm was missing all the way up to her shoulder. Most of her armor was severely damaged and charred. Hunk stepped next to Keith, and he could see the yellow paladin shaking out of the corner of his eye.

 

“Is she…?” Hunk started, his voice trembling just as much as his body. Shiro finally moved, running forward and falling to his knees next to Pidge. Keith and Hunk stepped forward slowly, afraid of what conclusion Shiro would make.

 

“She’s alive.” Shiro said weakly, his voice breaking. He pressed his hand hard into her shoulder to stop the blood pouring to the ground. Hunk knelt down next to them, looking Pidge over.

 

“She was caught in the explosion?” Hunk asked, looking up at Shiro. The black paladin brushed his thumb over a bit of exposed flesh on Pidge’s shoulder.

 

“That’s what it looks like.” He said, biting his lip a bit. Keith could practically see his mind racing, trying to think of something to do. Keith looked around, wondering where Lance was. As he was turning around to look, he spotted the lions, still crashed where they left them.

 

“Don’t we have first-aid kits in the lions?” Keith said quietly. He didn’t expect anyone to hear him.

 

“Hunk, can you go to the lions and get all of the kits? I have a feeling we’ll need all of them.” Shiro practically demanded. Hunk nodded, suddenly hardened. Keith helped him up and watched the yellow paladin jog off towards the lions.

 

“We have to look for Lance.” Keith said, hugging his own arms. He looked down at Shiro, who didn’t seem to hear him or was ignoring him. A loud clap of thunder suddenly made them both jump. “Fuck…” Keith whispered, realizing how much tension was in his body.

 

“What we need to do is find some shelter.” Shiro said, struggling to his feet with Pidge in his arms.

 

“But, what about Lance?” Keith asked, planting his feet stubbornly. Shiro gave him a knowing look.

 

“Keith, we have to get Pidge stable if we can. I’m just as worried about him as you, but she is going to die if I don’t get her to some sort of shelter.” He said. He turned away from Keith and started looking around.

 

Keith shivered as rain started to fall on the three of them. He looked around like Shiro was doing. He spotted the mouth of a cave off a nearby cliff face.

 

“Shiro, over there.” He said, pointing to the cave. Shiro sighed in relief and smiled weakly at Keith.

 

“Nice eye, let’s go.” He said, starting to walk forward. Keith stayed put, determined to find Lance.

 

“Shiro, I have to look for Lance.” Keith said stubbornly. Shiro stopped and turned around.

 

“Keith…” He started, but Keith cut him off.

 

“Look, I’m worried about her too, but Lance could be dying out there too. Why wouldn’t he have stayed with her? I can follow footprints, so I’ll look for him alone. You and Hunk keep Pidge alive.” He said sternly. Shiro’s face softened a bit. 

 

“Okay, bring Lance back.” He said. He sounded weak and worried, and it wasn’t a voice Keith liked. He was so used to Shiro being strong, untouchable even. “Good luck.”

 

Keith nodded at Shiro, then looked down at Pidge. He gently reached his hand out and brushed her bangs out of her face.

 

“Stay alive.” He said to her, then turned away to go find Lance. 

 

Keith trekked through the dense jungle, the rain coating his armor and even making his hair stick to his head. He stared at the footprints on the ground, making sure to move as fast as possible before the rain washed away any hope of finding the blue paladin.

 

Keith didn’t really know how to track. He knew which direction the odd tracks were going, but he had no idea what could have happened or if these tracks were even Lance’s. But he had to try his best to find him.

 

Lance usually annoyed Keith to no end, but now that his life was in danger, Keith couldn’t deny he was desperate to find him. He and Lance had actually been growing closer over the past few months, and Keith was even starting to have a small crush on his friend. He had recently told Shiro about it, and he was, luckily, very accepting of Keith’s feelings.

 

Keith snapped back to the present as he stumbled upon a dead body. It wasn’t Lance’s, but rather an odd alien’s. It was blue in color, and very tall. It was at least 8 feet. It was bald and only had three fingers. Keith noted the many gunshot wounds it had, and moved on.

 

After a few hundred more feet, he spotted another. It had died in the same way, and there was another right next to it. Keith looked over to a large tree, wondering if there were more nearby. He saw another body at the base of the tree, but this one was different. It had familiar blue armor. And brown hair.

 

“Lance!!” Keith shouted, running over to his friend.

 

The blue paladin was propped against the trunk of the tree, a large spear sticking out of the center of his stomach. He also had several lacerations scattered about his body. His breath was coming out short and ragged. Keith kneeled down to him, and he opened his eyes.

 

“Keith…” He rasped out, blue eyes foggy and tired. Keith gently pressed his had against Lance’s cheek, and the injured boy leaned into the touch and sighed.

 

“Lance, stay with me, okay? We have to get you to the others.” Keith said, gazing at the spear. He knew he had to get that out before moving him. “What happened?” He looked back up at Lance.

 

“There was an explosion…and Pidge…Did you find her? Please…is she still alive…?” Lance huffed, putting his hand by his wound.

 

“Shiro has her, and she’s alive for now. Hunk got the first aid kits from the lions.” Keith explained. “But you’re in danger too, Lance. That spear is deep, I have to get it out.” Lance grunted quietly, shutting his eyes. Keith patted his face, feeling sharp, jagged glass in his left cheek bone.

 

“Keith…” Lance breathed. Keith sighed shakily, touching Lance’s hand.

 

“What’s with the glass? Is it from the explosion?” He asked, slowly moving his hand to the handle of the spear. Lance nodded and touched his cheek gently.

 

“I was in the doorway…trying to get to Pidge…” He murmured, then coughed roughly. A bit of blood spurted out of his mouth and dripped on his lip. Keith leaned back ever so slightly in surprise, then gulped.

 

“Okay, Lance, I’m going to take the spear out of you, alright?” He said shakily, grabbing the handle with both hands. Lance nodded tiredly. Keith stood slowly, then planted his foot on the ground next to Lance’s hip. He exhaled slowly, then pulled hard.

 

Lance cried out in pain as the spear exited his abdomen, then dropped his head back against the trunk of the tree, whimpering in pain. Keith dropped the spear and fell forward onto his knees, pressing both hands over Lance’s wound.

 

“Fuck…fuck fuck…” He whispered over and over as Keith pressed harder into the wound. Keith exhaled slowly, trying to calm his nerves. He had to find some way to keep pressure on Lance’s wound as he got him to the cave.

 

The red paladin eyed his armor, more specifically the black spandex underneath it. He quickly removed the armor from his right arm and ripped the cloth underneath completely off. Lance raised his brow slowly.

 

“What…?” He started, but Keith shushed him. He reached behind Lance and stretched the fabric all the way around, then tied it at the front. He made sure to tie it as tight as he could.

 

“Okay, Lance, we need to regroup. It’s not that far.” Keith said to his friend. Lance rolled his head to look at Keith.

 

“Yeah… it’s wet…” He rasped out, lifting his arm slowly. Keith breathed out a nervous laugh and grabbed Lance’s waist.

 

“Come on, buddy.” He said, draping Lance’s arm over his shoulder and standing him up. Luckily, Lance wasn’t that heavy, and was still coherent enough to walk with Keith.  
Lance rested his head on Keith’s shoulder, and Keith could feel his wet hair against his now bare skin. It made him shiver. His face flushed a little, but he knew he had to focus on getting his friend to the cave Shiro had mentioned. He hoped it even existed. They needed a place to camp out until they could get in contact with Allura and Coran, which needed to be soon, judging by the state of Lance and Pidge both.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello again! I'm trying to make this easier to read, so please bear with me! Sorry this one was so long. Or maybe this length is better? Not sure! Thank you for reading.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The cave.

Keith and Lance stumbled through the dense jungle, staggering back and forth. Keith was worried they were going to get lost, but he was luckily able to keep his eye on the cliffside. Lance was bleeding all over him and he hoped they could patch him up.

 

They finally got to the cave after about ten minutes of walking. It didn’t seem to be very large or very deep, but it definitely was big enough for the five of them to stay out of the rain. Keith looked at Lance and shifted him a little before making his way to the entrance.

 

As he stood in the entryway, Shiro’s helmet suddenly banged on the ground in front of him, causing him and Lance to jump. Lance watched the helmet roll as Keith looked up.

 

Shiro was gripping the bridge of his nose roughly, his entire body tense. He was obviously distressed. Something was wrong. Keith shifted his gaze to the ground, where Hunk was sitting cross-legged on the ground with Pidge’s head in his lap. She was on her back lying straight out from Hunk, and she wasn’t looking too good. They had already removed the upper half of her armor and dressed her wound with a lot of gauze. Her black sports undershirt was barely visible under the bandages covering her chest.

 

“What’s going on…?” Keith asked tentatively, turning his gaze back to Shiro. He walked in and sat Lance down against the wall. Lance gazed over to Hunk and Pidge, obviously worried.

 

“We can’t get through to the castle. I can’t contact Allura or Coran.” Shiro said shakily. He looked up. “Lance.” He breathed, noticing how badly injured the blue paladin was. He leaned down to him. “Are you doing okay?” Lance looked up at Shiro with glazed eyes.

 

“I got…attacked by natives…but…I’m okay.” He said with a half-hearted laugh. Shiro wasn’t amused. He grabbed a first-aid kit from next to Hunk and begun to tend to Lance’s wounds.

 

Keith moved over to Hunk to get a closer look at Pidge, and sat down next to him. He was cradling her head in his hands gently, looking very serious.

 

“You okay, Hunk?” Keith asked. Hunk just nodded in response.

 

“I’m just worried about her.” He said.

 

Hunk had a very good reason to be worried. Pidge was almost see-through. Her veins were dark against her pale skin, especially branching out from her wound. She wasn’t really breathing very often, and when she was, it was drawn in very quickly. There was a square of gauze over her entire shoulder area, but there seemed to be a little blood blotting through.

 

“How is she doing?” Keith asked, gazing up at Hunk. He sighed and gently touched her cheek with his thumb.

 

“She’s cold.” Hunk said softly. “I’m scared.” Keith hesitantly placed a hand on Hunk’s shoulder, trying to comfort him.

 

“Did you…cauterize it?” Lance asked, breathing hard from the pain caused by Shiro cleaning his wounds. All three looked at him.

 

“What?” Shiro asked, sitting back. Lance sighed.

 

“My mama was a nurse…she taught me all kinds of things…” He said, then swallowed hard. “An avulsion like hers needs to be cauterized… The explosion may have done a little bit of that…since she’s somehow still alive…” He winced a bit as he spoke. “High heat is applied to a wound…to close it up… It looks like she only has a few minutes left…hurry…or let her bleed out…” He finished, looking over at Keith worriedly.

 

“Well, we can’t let her bleed out.” Hunk said sternly. Keith hugged his arms nervously.

 

“We…may not have a choice.” He said quietly. Hunk glared at him.

 

“How can you possibly say that?”

 

“Think about it.” Keith retorted defensively. “We don’t have anything to cauterize it with.”

 

“Yes we do.” Shiro interrupted. He stood up, staring at his Galra arm. “This heats up. I was able to start sealing a door shut when Allura and I snuck onto that ship with all the quintessence. I think it’ll work.”

 

“You have to do it now…” Lance said urgently. “People bleed out fast…” Shiro nodded and kneeled down to Pidge, slowly moving the gauze and bandages out of the way. A few drips of blood fell onto the cave floor as it was uncovered. Keith cringed at the sight of the wound. Shiro’s hand started glowing bright purple, and after a few seconds, Keith could feel intense heat radiating off of it.

 

Shiro pressed his hand tightly against Pidge’s avulsion, and steam rose into the air. Keith covered his nose and mouth as the smell of burning flesh filled the cave. He saw Hunk hold back a gag. Pidge had no reaction to the touch other than her body twitching ever so slightly. Shiro pulled his hand away after about ten seconds and deactivated his hand.

 

“It worked.” He said nervously. Hunk leaned his head down to Pidge’s chest and pressed his ear to her skin. Keith watched the color drain from his face.

 

“I can’t hear a heartbeat…” He said, and Keith’s stomach plummeted.

 

“What…?” Shiro said, suddenly seeming weak in the knees. Keith pressed two fingers against Pidge’s neck, desperately searching for a pulse. Hunk started to breathe heavy, trying to keep panic down.

 

“Hunk!” Lance suddenly called out sharply, startling everyone. “Compressions!” He barked, eyes blown wide. Hunk stared at Lance for a second, then gasped.

 

“Chest compressions! I know how to do chest compressions!!”

 

“Then do it!” Keith snapped. Hunk quickly maneuvered himself out from under Pidge and moved next to her. He placed both hands on her chest and started a round of compressions. After one round, he pressed his ear to her chest again, trying to hear her heart. Another round. Another listen. Another round. Keith was beginning to panic, and it looked like Shiro was too. Another round. Halfway through, the small girl let out a strange noise that almost sounded like a cough. Hunk stopped and listened again, then sighed. Keith pressed his hand to his chest and felt his heart pounding against his palm.

 

“Good job, Hunk…” Shiro huffed out, sitting on the ground. Keith looked at Pidge, who was breathing steadily now. Hunk returned to his previous position, trembling and nervous. He turned his attention towards Lance.

 

“How’re you doing buddy? Need anything?” He asked, nerves obviously shot. Lance hummed.

 

“I want to stand in the rain. It looks so beautiful…I miss the rain…” He said thoughtfully.

 

“Water.” Keith said suddenly. “You and Pidge both, you need water.”

 

“Don’t we all need water?” Lance retorted with his signature grin. Shiro stood up from next to Keith.

 

“Keith’s right. You and Pidge need water more than us. It’ll help your body heal, and it’ll get her blood flowing faster.” He said, fishing through another first-aid kit. Keith stood up and walked over to him.

 

“I’ll help.” He said. He could tell Shiro was tense, and he wanted to calm him down.

 

“Yeah.” Shiro said. He handed Keith a small cup. “I don’t know why these are in here, but I’m glad they are.”

 

“This works.” Keith responded as Shiro turned to face Hunk.

 

“Hunk, we’ll be right back. We’re going to gather rainwater.” He said. Hunk nodded. Lance scooted closer to Hunk and leaned on his shoulder.

 

Keith and Shiro stepped out of the cave, and Keith looked over at the older man. He was pale and tense, and he was worried about Shiro’s state of mind. He took off his helmet and walked over to him.

 

“Shiro, talk to me.” He said, placing a hand on his shoulder. Shiro sighed and faced him.

 

“Keith, I’m nervous. Allura and Coran can’t hear us. They were almost positive it was going to be easy to talk to the natives. But now…” He trailed off. “After the lions crashed, they said they’d come back for us tomorrow. Now that we have an emergency, we can’t get to them.” Keith gave him a sympathetic look.

 

“I know, but…things will be okay, right? They’ll be back tomorrow. And you sealed up Pidge’s wound, she’ll be okay. As long as Lance keeps pressure on his, he’ll be okay too.” He tried to reassure, but he was just as nervous. Shiro sighed.

 

“I’m just worried. I mean, Lance is covered in lacerations. And stab wounds are serious. And Pidge lost an arm!” He groaned and ran his hands through his hair. Keith scratched the back of his head.

 

“Just…don’t stress too much. We have to stay calm and collected.”

 

“You’re right. Thanks Keith.” Shiro smiled at him genuinely. Keith smiled back.

 

They stood outside for a few minutes, collection rainwater in their cups. Keith tasted it at one point, making sure it was actually water instead of some kind of alien element. Once the cups were pretty full, they stepped back inside the cave, hair stuck to their foreheads.

 

Shiro knelt down in front of Lance, holding the cup to his lips. Lance opened his eyes and drank slowly, humming appreciatively. Keith sat down next to Pidge and Hunk, then bit his lip hesitantly.

 

“Should I be giving her water while she’s unconscious? I mean, couldn’t she drown or something?” He asked, looking up at Hunk.

 

“Give her little bits at a time. The body knows when it’s dehydrated, and she’ll still drink it.” Hunk said while lifting Pidge’s head a bit and opening her mouth with his thumb. Keith poured a few drops into her mouth and watched as she swallowed, a bit fascinated. He kept repeating the motion until the small cup was empty, then sat back with a sigh.

 

“We should all get some rest.” Keith said, looking outside. “It’s getting dark.” Shiro hummed and sat on the other side of Hunk, and Keith suddenly realized they were all huddled up together and had to suppress a small smile.

 

“Why are you all snuggled around me?” Hunk asked quietly. Keith chuckled lightly, snuggling between Lance and Hunk.

 

“You’re warm.” He said. Shiro leaned on Hunk’s shoulder from the other side.

 

Keith suddenly realized how tired he was, and begun to drift off. It was finally dark inside, and the air around them was cooling quickly. He gently placed a hand on Pidge’s chest, realizing she’d probably get cold during the night. Shiro apparently had the same thought, as he did the same thing.

 

Lance’s snore made Keith start, and he looked at the blue paladin. His snore wasn’t very loud, but it was enough for at least Keith to hear. He was happy that Lance seemed to be okay for the moment. He made sure his free arm was pressing gently into Lance’s wound, just so there would be some pressure, and then slowly drifted off to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone! I'm super happy you're reading. I would love to hear what you guys think, so don't be afraid to leave a comment containing constructive criticism, or just how you're liking the story!


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's going to get a little graphic.

It couldn’t have been more than a few hours after Shiro had drifted off before he was waking up again. He could hear his name being called, and it was shaking him from his sleep. He opened his eyes and sat upright slowly. It was Hunk.

“Shiro we have a problem.” He whispered. Shiro rubbed his eyes quickly, trying to shake the remnants of sleep.

 

“What is it?” He asked, then immediately recognized how exhausted Hunk looked. “Wait, did you sleep?”

 

“Only a little, but…” He trailed off, shifting his gaze down to Pidge. Shiro followed his eyes and immediately saw the problem.

 

Pidge was breathing heavily, head turned to one side. Her breaths were short and fast, almost like she was panting, and her face was bright red. She was making a few whimpering noises in her sleep, her face twitching a little every few seconds. She was obviously in pain.

 

“She’s not cold anymore.” Hunk said slowly, looking back up at Shiro. He locked worried eyes with the yellow paladin. He touched the small girl’s forehead and furrowed his brows in concern at how hot it was. He bit his lip and drew his hand back. He could feel the heat radiating through his glove; that wasn’t a good sign.

 

“She’s burning up.” He said, examining her gauze covered shoulder.

 

“Why would she have a fever?” Hunk asked, stroking the girl’s cheek gently. A realization hit Shiro, and his blood ran cold.

 

“Infection.” He said lowly. “Shit…” He looked back up at Hunk, who suddenly looked like he was going to cry. The fear for Pidge’s life seemed to have hit him just as hard as it Shiro. They both looked to Hunk’s other side as Keith shifted.

 

“What’s going on…?” The red paladin asked, rubbing one eye.

 

“Pidge has a very high fever.” Shiro explained, and Keith’s eyes widened.

 

“An infection?” He asked seriously, leaning forwards a little to look at Pidge.

 

“That’s…what we’re thinking.” Hunk said worriedly. Shiro touched the area where her arm used to be gently, and gripped the edge of the gauze.

 

“I’m going to look at it, just to see if it’s infected. Hopefully it’s not…that would be an even bigger emergency.” He said. He slowly moved the gauze out of the way to look at the open wound. 

 

He completely removed to gauze and examined the avulsion closely in the low light. Her skin was charred and black around the entire area, but the edges were red and puffy. The dead, black skin almost looked like it was peeling, and Shiro could see off-white puss starting to seep through the cracks. A lump formed in his throat, and he had to fight the urge to vomit. He quickly replaced the gauze and made sure it was secure.

 

“Yeah…it’s infected.” He forced out, putting a hand over his mouth. Hunk dropped his head against the cave wall and sighed. Shiro could almost hear a low growl, like the man was suppressing a scream.

 

“Has she woken up at all since the explosion?” Keith asked, feeling her temperature for himself.

 

“No. We should try to do that, right?” Hunk looked over at Shiro. Shiro nodded and leaned forward.

 

He patted Pidge’s warm cheek, trying to get her to coherence. She made a small, pained noise, but didn’t wake up. He patted a little harder, and saw her eyes start to roll open.

 

“Hey, Pidge, come on. Can you hear me?” He said quietly, leaning a little closer to her. She stared at him with glossy eyes and searched his face. Her face contorted into confusion.

 

“…Dad…?” She said, so quiet he almost couldn’t hear. Shiro’s chest suddenly felt very tight, and he felt like he couldn’t move. He gazed up at the other two awake paladins, who had looks of concern on their faces.

 

“N-No, Pidge, it’s Shiro.” He tried, swallowing hard. Her eyebrows furrowed further.

 

“What’s…Pidge…?” She asked weakly, and Shiro just sat back.

 

“Shiro…” Hunk started, reaching a hand out to him for support or comfort.

 

“Okay…” Shiro breathed out, trying to shake his nerves. Pidge let out a whine, reaching for her shoulder. Hunk grabbed her hand. “Keith.” Keith snapped his head up at the mention of his name. “How is Lance? Is he warm too?”

 

“Um…” Keith turned toward Lance, pressing his bare hand to the Cuban’s cheek. “Yeah. Definitely a fever. Not as bad as Pidge’s though.”

 

“Fuck.” Shiro said in his normal speaking voice. Pidge reached out with her remaining hand and touched his leg.

 

“It hurts…” She whispered, obviously in a lot of pain. She had a few tears running down the sides of her face now. “Everything…hurts…” Shiro touched her hand gently.

 

“I know, Katie. I know.” He said softly, feeling the sting of tears behind his eyes.

 

“Shiro.” Keith said in a voice that sounded almost detached and airy. “Is she going to die?”

 

“Don’t say that.” Hunk snapped shakily. Shiro just stared at Pidge, who had closed her eyes again.

 

“I…I don’t know.” Shiro murmured. “I don’t know.”

 

They all sat in silence for a little while, just watching Pidge breathe and listening to Lance snore. Shiro was full of absolute panic. He was having to face the very real possibility of losing a team member. Maybe even two, with Lance also being feverish. He gripped the bridge of his nose, trying to figure out something to do. He felt utterly helpless in trying to help his teammates. He thought back to their fevers. Maybe he could figure out a way to lower them.

 

“Okay.” He said, finally breaking the silence. “We still have a little gauze left. Maybe we can wet it with the rainwater outside to put on their heads.” Keith raised his brows.

 

“That’s…not a bad idea. We can give it a shot.” He said.

 

So, Shiro and Keith gathered up the remaining gauze. They folded it up into short, thick strips and stepped outside the cave into the damp air. They spent a few minutes dipping the strips into puddles, making sure they were all cold enough to offer some kind of relief. They went back into the cave with the soggy gauze. Keith kneeled down to Lance and placed one strip on his forehead, causing him to wake up. Shiro heard him groan in pain and swallowed hard.

 

Shiro had more strips for Pidge. Since her fever was alarmingly high, he wanted to cool her down as much as possible. He placed one on her forehead, one on her arm, and another on her chest. She hummed appreciatively, so at least she was aware to some degree.

 

“Hunk, keep an eye on her. I’m going to check on Lance.” Shiro said, placing a hand on Hunk’s shoulder. The larger man was practically wrecked, almost shaking with nervousness. Shiro cupped Hunk’s face in his hands. “Listen to me. It will be okay. She will be okay. Lance will be okay. You have to believe that.” Hunk just nodded in response.

 

Shiro moved a few feet over to Lance and Keith, where Lance was now very awake. He was gripping his stomach tightly, sweat dripping from his forehead as he writhed in pain where he sat.

 

“Lance, what’s going on?” Shiro asked. Lance looked at him and sighed shakily.

 

“H-hey boss…Nothing really…I feel like I’m going to throw up all my organs…but whatever.” He said through raspy breaths. Keith was touching Lance’s shoulder gently and worriedly. Shiro sighed slowly.

 

“Let me see your wound, Lance.” He said, placing a hand over both of Lance’s, which were tightly closed over his bare stomach.

 

“No te preocupes, no es una gran cosa.” Lance muttered, closing his eyes again. Shiro raised a brow at him.

 

“Lance, I don’t speak Spanish.” He said softly, not sure if his friend was even aware he was speaking his native language. “But just let me see if it’s infected.” Lance groaned, and let Shiro move his hands away.

 

Lance’s entire chest and stomach was coated in sweat, even though it was a bit chilly in the cave. The gauze around his stomach was starting to get damp. Shiro pulled back the cotton in front of his wound, and was surprised to see that it looked fine. He looked over at Keith with a confused expression. The wound wasn’t infected, in fact it looked pretty healthy, as far as getting a spear to the stomach goes. The bleeding was way down and it looked pretty clean. Keith started examining Lance’s other lacerations, trying to find any signs of infection. He shook his head at Shiro.

 

“Well, your wounds look okay. I wonder why you’re feeling so sick?” Shiro said, mostly to himself. Keith felt Lance’s face again.

 

“You’re burning up, could you just legitimately be sick?” He asked, and Lance shrugged a little.

 

“I guess…but my stomach feels like it’s churning…” He said, pressing his hands back over his stomach. Shiro hummed in thought,

 

“Let’s get you more water, it may help settle your stomach. Or maybe we could try to find some food?” Shiro was thinking out loud at this point, but it was calming his nerves ever so slightly. He ran a hand through his hair and sighed.

 

“Veneno…?” Lance murmured. Keith looked up at him.

 

“What?” He asked. Lance groaned, seeming to realize he had slipped back into Spanish.

 

“Poison.” He repeated in English, causing Shiro to gasp softly.

 

“Shit, that’s possible. Do you know for sure?” He asked. Lance just shrugged. Shiro sighed and thought for a moment. He had to figure out something to do to help Lance. Said boy suddenly lurched forward, a hand over his mouth.

 

“Lance!?” Keith asked, worry pricking through his voice. Shiro placed a hand on Lance’s shoulder.

 

“ ‘m gonna throw up…” The blue paladin muttered through his hand. Keith moved to help immediately.

 

“Okay, okay, come on, let’s move you over here a little bit.” He said, wrapping his arm around Lance. Shiro helped Keith move Lance a little bit away from Hunk and Pidge.

 

“Okay, Lance, don’t hold it back.” Shiro said slowly. Lance trembled for a few seconds before coughing and heaving forward. Shiro and Keith both cringed.

 

“Oh shit, that’s blood.” Keith said slowly and shakily. Shiro looked down and sure enough, Lance had just thrown up mostly just blood. Shiro felt cold all of a sudden, and his body broke out in goose bumps. He scrambled to get to his helmet.

 

“Allura! You have to come get us now!” He practically screamed into his microphone. He was becoming undone very quickly. “Please! We need you!!” A lump caught in his throat. The speakers remained static. He stayed frozen for a few minutes, then felt a hand on his shoulder.

 

“Shiro…” It was Hunk. He had moved out from under Pidge. Shiro put a hand over Hunk’s appreciatively.

 

“I don’t know what to do. What do we do?” He asked, turning back towards his teammates. They all stayed silent.

 

Eventually, they all returned to their former positions on the floor. Shiro couldn’t get back to sleep, even if he tried. He was sweating profusely due to anxiety. One by one, the other paladins fell back to sleep, the last one being Pidge. She just stared at Shiro for a little while, and he figured she was trying to recognize him. He didn’t know what to do. He felt completely helpless, and began to wonder if they were going to die here on this planet.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No te preocupes, no es una gran cosa = don't worry, it's not a big deal  
> Veneno = poison
> 
> I used google translate for these, so please let me know if there's a better way to say this in Spanish.
> 
> Was this short? Or long? I have no idea, it's late.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's not over.

Morning light was what woke Shiro up this time. He cracked his eyes open just a little, feeling blissful for a moment. But only a moment. Then he realized where he was.

 

He sat up quickly, noticing everyone else was still asleep. He looked down at Pidge, whose head was still cradled in Hunk’s hands. Her breaths came out slow and shallow. It worried Shiro a little. He looked past her and Hunk to examine Lance. He still looked like he was in a lot of pain, but was still asleep. He was worried that he was right about the poison.

 

As Shiro began to stand, he noticed Keith. The red paladin was still sleeping, but he seemed…pale. He was shivering every few seconds, but didn’t look flushed or feverish otherwise. He walked over and leaned down to him.

 

“Keith.” He whispered. The smaller man jolted awake, eyes blowing wide. Shiro took a half step back, partly out of his own surprise, and partly to give him some space. Keith relaxed as he completely woke up, and stared up at Shiro.

 

“Hey.” He said, rubbing his eyes. “What’s up?”

 

“Are you feeling okay?” Shiro got right to the point. Keith arched a brow.

 

“Yeah?” He said questioningly. “I’m fine. Should we wake them up?” He asked, gesturing to the other paladins. Shiro hummed in thought.

 

“I’d like to see Lance and Pidge’s levels of coherence, but we should let Hunk sleep.” He answered, and Keith nodded. He gently nudged the blue paladin next to him, who took a little longer to wake up than Keith did. He groaned lowly, peeking his eyes open just a little.

 

“What…?” He asked, voice raspy and weak. His head rolled a little, like his neck was too weak to support it.

 

“How are you feeling?” Shiro asked, kneeling down. Lance hummed. 

 

“Foggy.” He answered slowly.

 

“Foggy?” Keith repeated, tilting his head to the side. Lance nodded and waved a hand in front of his eyes.

 

“Everything is foggy looking…” He explained, then inhaled sharply as a wave of pain racked his body. Keith slowly rubbed his back while the pain passed.

 

“Okay.” Shiro said, feeling the panic from the night before start to rise back up. “Go back to sleep, if it helps.” Lance nodded and closed his eyes, leaning his head back against the cave wall.

 

Shiro turned to Pidge, and Keith leaned forward to watch as well. Shiro was careful not to wake Hunk as he examined Pidge. He took the wet gauze strips off of her, then touched her forehead.

 

“What?” Keith asked, apparently seeing Shiro’s worry on his face.

 

“She’s still way too hot.” He explained. “I’m starting to worry about brain damage…”

 

“Do you really think she’s that hot?” Keith asked worriedly, feeling her temperature for himself. “Yeah, she’s that hot.” He said, answering his own question.

 

Shiro hummed and patted Pidge’s cheek, and action he wasn’t happy about getting used to. Pidge opened her eyes slowly, and Shiro noted they were glossy. She breathed out slowly, and stared at him.

 

“Shiro…” She whispered in an empty voice. A glimmer of hope sparked in Shiro, and he found himself breaking into a smile.

 

“Yeah!” He whispered excitedly. “That’s me, you got it.” Pidge furrowed her brows ever so slightly.

 

“Shiro.” She repeated, slowly looking away. Shiro’s smile faded a little. She was now staring at Keith.

 

“Hey, Pidge.” Keith offered, waving a little. She didn’t seem to follow his hand at all.

 

“Keith…” She muttered, closing her eyes again. Shiro gently shook her arm.

 

“Pidge, stay with us.” He said urgently. The girl’s eyes snapped back open, blown wide and staring straight up. Shiro could feel a shiver travel down his spine. It was unsettling, seeing how out of it she was just from infection.

 

Hunk suddenly moved, yawning as he woke up. He looked down at Pidge and jumped, startled to see her awake.

 

“Holy shit, Pidge.” He whispered softly, looking up at Keith and Shiro. “Good morning everyone.” He said shakily.

 

“Hunk…?” Pidge said, a whimper in her voice. Hunk gasped in surprise.

 

“You recognize me?” He asked, hoping for an answer. He didn’t get one.

 

“I’m not sure if this is a good sign or not.” Shiro said. “She’s saying our names, but nothing else.”

 

“Recognition is a good sign though, right?” Keith asked. Shiro shrugged.

 

“I have no idea. I honestly wish I had some medical training.” He said, watching Pidge closely. Her hand twitched a bit, but that was the most noticeable movement she made. Her breaths were sharp, and her hand just kept twitching. It was making Shiro nervous.

 

“Hey, can you talk to us?” Hunk asked, moving Pidge’s head a bit. She hummed.

 

“Garrison…” She murmured. Shiro looked up at Hunk, then at Keith.

 

“The Garrison? She’s remembering the Garrison?” Keith said, confused. Shiro narrowed his eyes in thought.

 

“Is she twitching?” Lance’s voice came suddenly, causing them to jump. Shiro looked over at Lance, who was still writhing in pain.

 

“Yes.” Hunk answered. “Why?”

 

“Fuck.” Lance huffed out.

 

Pidge arched her chest up suddenly, leaning her head back hard into Hunk’s lap. Her eyes rolled back in her head, sending chills through Shiro. The other paladins – including Lance – leaned forward to watch her, worried. Her body trembled a bit, and then she relaxed again, her eyes closing.

 

“What…?” Hunk started. A small sob escaped Lance.

 

“Guys…I think she just had a seizure…” He said in a broken voice, covering his mouth. Shiro’s heart sank and pressed his fingers to Pidge’s neck. There was no pulse.

 

“No, we can’t lose her again.” He said shakily. Hunk let out a shuddering sob.

 

“Sh-should I…?” He started, trying hard not to cry. Shiro started to reply, but a loud thump interrupted him. He looked down to see Keith’s fist resting on Pidge’s chest. He had slammed his fist down as hard as possible right in the center of her chest.

 

“Keith!” Shiro scolded, looking at the red paladin, dumbfounded. Keith looked back up at Shiro, terrified.

 

“I-I panicked…” He whispered.

 

“It worked!” Hunk exclaimed, his fingers resting under the green paladin’s jaw.

 

“She…has a pulse..?” Lance asked, face now wet with tears. Hunk nodded at him. Lance started to laugh, but it faded into a wet, disgusting cough. Keith turned toward him worriedly.

 

“Lance!?” He exclaimed, holding the boy’s shoulders. When Lance finally stopped coughing, he pulled his hand away. It was coated in blood.

 

Lance was now pale, with dark circles quickly forming under his eyes. His bottom lip quivered, and he dropped himself against the cave wall. He seemed unable to hold himself upright.

 

“I’m…gonna die…” He whimpered.

 

“No, you’re not, don’t say that.” Hunk said sharply, completely crying now.

 

Shiro couldn’t take it.

 

He stood up, fueled by adrenaline, and picked up his helmet. He shoved it on his head and flipped on the communication system. It was static, but it was a different kind of static than before.

 

“Allura!!” He screamed, ignoring the looks from Keith, Lance, and Hunk. He couldn’t say anymore.

 

Then there was a crackle.

 

It almost sounded like a voice.

 

“…iro? …at you…? What’s goi…n?” Allura’s voice came through the speaker, and Shiro fell to his knees.

 

“Come get us. Right now. Hurry.” Was all he could get out.

 

“We’re…n the…way.” Her jumbled voice came back to him and he felt a smile break onto his face.

 

“You got Allura!?” Keith exclaimed, standing up. Shiro nodded.

 

“She’s coming to save us.” He said, turning to look at Lance. “Stay. Alive.” He growled. Lance nodded. Shiro shifted his gaze to Pidge. He wanted to say something to her, but at this point he wasn’t even sure she could hear him. 

 

“Shiro.” Keith said, wrapping his arms around him. “We’re going to be okay.”

 

Shiro hugged him back tightly.

 

“Yeah. We’ll be okay.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ahhhh, I've added so much from my original draft of this, but I'm happy with it! I promise, this is no where near the end, there is still so much more!


	6. Author's Note

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry uwu

Hey readers! If there are a lot of readers? I'm not really sure. I hope you're enjoying this story so far! It's been a lot of fun to write. I know there's a lot of angst, and trust me, there's going to be so much more. I'm posting this author's note in place of a chapter today because I wanted to let you know that I don't have the next chapter finished yet! ;-; I'm American, and today is the Fourth of July! My fiance and I are driving out of town to visit some friends, and I won't be able to write there. Hopefully I can post the chapter tomorrow, if I'm lucky. I work a mid shift. -_- Anyway! I'm so sorry the chapter won't be out today, I hope you'll forgive me! I've actually been writing this fic for a little over a month now I believe. It's saved as one big story on my computer, so I'm retyping it and separating it into chapters so I can post it here. The last chapter had A LOT of changes from my original draft, so I'm sorry if it feels not as detailed or rushed. Once again, I hope you're enjoying, and I will see you tomorrow!


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Finally home.

Hunk couldn’t wait to get back to the castle so he could at least try to relax. He looked up at the large ship as he walked toward it, Lance in his arms. He looked down at his best friend. He was paler than he had ever seen him, even when he had gotten the flu when they were roommates at the Garrison. There was blood staining his teeth and lips, which made Hunk’s stomach turn. 

 

They entered the open door of the castle, Shiro and Keith in front of Hunk. Shiro had Pidge in his arms. Hunk turned his head to look back at the exotic planet. He grit his teeth when he saw all the dirt and blood they were tracking in, his body tensing more. Lance suddenly let out a hard, heavy breath, which made him tense more.

 

The team walked into the med bay, and Allura was standing there waiting for them. She opened her mouth to say something, but immediately shut it and covered her mouth with both hands. Her eyes were blown wide, and she took a half step back. Hunk followed her gaze. She was staring at Pidge.

 

Coran was standing a little behind Allura, and he was staring at Lance, who winced a bit in Hunk’s arms. Hunk had never seen Coran look so serious.

 

“Allura, they need help. What can the pods do?” Shiro asked darkly. He sounded so exhausted.

 

The team learned recently that the pods weren’t exactly for healing. They couldn’t fix everything. Allura told them that they help restore damaged tissue and speed up the body’s healing process. Apparently they can add medicines to the pods to fight certain viruses, but that was about all they could do.

 

“W-well…” Allura started, stepping towards Hunk. She looked Lance over for a moment, moving the gauze on his stomach out of the way. “They’ll help Lance heal, but he’ll probably be in there for a few days.”

 

“He’s poisoned.” Keith said quickly. Allura stayed silent, looking concerned.

 

“We have some medicines we could add to it, which should fight whatever is making him sick.” Coran said, stepping up next to Hunk. He looked Lance over with a small sigh.

 

“As for Pidge…” Allura started in a reluctant tone. Hunk looked at her, waiting anxiously for her to say something. “There’s…not really anything a pod can do.” She said finally.

 

“Allura.” Shiro growled, causing fear to spike in Hunk. “She has a bad infection. We’ve already lost her twice. There has to be something we can do, I’m not giving up on her.” He said, getting more intense with every word.

 

“The pods aren’t going to fight infection. They just don’t do that.” She said softly.

 

“Are you saying…we can’t save her?” Hunk started, letting Coran take Lance from him. Allura held up her hands defensively to him and Shiro.

 

“No, not at all. We have a medicine we can inject her with that helps fight infections in Alteans. All we can do is see if it works on her.” She said. Hunk exhaled slowly in relief, but was still worried about Pidge staying alive. He watched as Shiro handed Pidge to Allura. She looked completely lifeless, and Hunk was starting to worry that she’d slipped away again. He shook the thought.

 

He moved over to Coran. Keith was helping him get Lance in a pod, and Hunk moved to help. After they got Lance in and the pod closed up, Keith leaned against it and slid down until he was sitting on the floor. Hunk sat down next to the red paladin as Coran put medicine in the pod.

 

“Keith, are you okay?” He asked. Keith was leaning his head back against the cool metal, his eyes closed.

 

“Mmmmmmhm.” Keith hummed, not moving. Hunk just looked at him for a moment, until he opened his eyes and looked at him. “What?”

 

“You don’t look very good.” Hunk said, trying to be honest. Keith had dark circles under his eyes, and his cheekbones were pink. He had his arms crossed over his chest as usual, but he was slumped now, when his posture was normally good. He just shrugged.

 

“I’m more worried about Lance and Pidge.” He said slowly. “So, I’m just going to wait here.”

 

“It’s going to be a few days before either of them are awake.” Coran pointed out, then moved over to help Allura and Shiro with Pidge.

 

“You should take a shower.” Hunk suggested, looking at Keith’s slightly bloodied armor. Keith looked at him, raising a brow.

 

“You should too. Clean that cut on your face.” He said, pointing to Hunk’s face. He tilted his head to the side in confusion, and touched his left cheek bone. Sure enough, there was a cut along the bone, which was bleeding a little and kind of deep. He had no idea how it had gotten there.

 

“I…didn’t even notice…” He said softly.

 

“Must’ve been when we were running to the explosion.” Keith huffed, closing his eyes again. “There were a lot of branches and stuff.” Hunk hummed in response, standing back up.

 

“Alright, but you need to take care of yourself too.” He said, looking down at Keith. He cracked an eye open.

 

“I’ll keep it in mind.”

 

Hunk walked over to Shiro, Allura, and Coran, where they were all hovering around Pidge. Said girl was lying on a table, much like a hospital bed back on Earth. She seemed to be half awake; her eyes fluttering open every now and again. Hunk leaned down to her and offered a comforting smile, trying to hide his rather obvious worry.

 

“Hey, Pidge.” He said softly. Pidge made eye contact with him for a split second, before turning her head away.

 

“Okay, she should be stable for now.” Allura said, putting a large syringe aside.

 

“We should keep an eye on her for a while, just to make sure the medicine takes.” Coran said.

 

“What if it doesn’t take?” Shiro asked. “Then what’s the plan?” Allura and Coran exchanged looks.

 

“I’m not sure. We don’t have much else we could try.” Allura said. “But it should take, don’t worry. And it’s a very strong medicine.”

 

“Alright…” Shiro said hesitantly. Allura smiled reassuringly at him.

 

“I’m going to get her out of this armor. It’s probably not helping her fever very much.” She said, lifting up the small girl. She turned and walked out of the room with her.   
Hunk looked over at Shiro, and noticed the man looked completely disheveled. He was almost shaking, making Hunk worry. He walked over to the black paladin and put a hand on his shoulder.

 

“Shiro, are you okay?” He asked gently. Shiro jumped a little, then looked at Hunk with a soft smile.

 

“I’m…fine.” He said quietly. Hunk narrowed his eyes.

 

“You don’t…seem fine.” He said skeptically. Shiro sighed.

 

“Are you fine?” He asked, face hardening a bit. Hunk was caught off guard by the question, and thought for a moment.

 

“Um…no. I’m not.” He said sincerely, looking back up at Shiro. The older man looked taken aback by his answer.

 

“Hunk, it’ll be okay.” He said after a minute. Hunk raised a brow at him.

 

“Don’t say that if you don’t believe it.” He said, his tone darker than he intended. Shiro’s face softened again and he looked away. “I’m sorry, Shiro.”

 

“No, it’s okay. You’re right. I think we all need to get some rest and fully process what’s going on.” The black paladin responded, smiling a little. Hunk laughed nervously.

 

“I can’t get Keith to go take a shower.” He said with a small grin. Shiro laughed lightly.

 

“Keith, go take a shower.” He called, without turning around.

 

“No.” Keith replied, without opening his eyes. Hunk laughed at the interaction as Allura walked back into the room.

 

The princess was still holding Pidge, but the smaller girl was now in a white tank top and black pajama shorts, and she was cleaned up a bit. Allura approached Shiro and Hunk and sighed.

 

“There, now she’ll be comfortable.” She said. 

 

“Wow, Allura, you’re pretty strong.” Hunk said, noting how the princess was effortlessly holding Pidge. Allura gave him an unamused look. 

 

“Hunk, she weighs like 60 pounds.” She said. Hunk blushed a little, embarrassed. “Can you take her to her room? She’ll be more comfortable in there than in here. The medicine looks like it’s working.”

 

“Sure.” Hunk agreed, taking the girl from Allura. She was right, Pidge was extremely light. He turned around and walked out of the med bay with her, not bothering to say anything else.

 

As he walked down the hallway towards the rooms, Hunk’s stomach was starting to feel like it was twisting. He kept thinking about how upset Pidge was going to be when she woke up; if she woke up. He thought about how she could have brain damage. He thought about the tears the girl would probably shed, knowing her life would never be the same. He thought about Pidge.

 

After reviving his friend, Hunk had been thinking about her a lot. Watching her die in front of him – twice – was making him realize how much he relied on Pidge. She always seemed to have his back when he was feeling nervous or upset. And he always liked to make sure she was getting enough sleep when she was on her laptop. They were a duo that couldn’t be broken up, but they almost had been. And Hunk didn’t know what he would’ve done without her. He couldn’t even imagine it.

 

He set her in her bed after entering the room and pulled the blankets over her. He left them just under her ribs, so she wouldn’t get too feverish again. Then he sat. He sat and watched her sleep for what could have been hours, thinking about her and what she meant to him and everyone else. His stomach kept turning as his mind kept racing, until he eventually tired himself out and fell asleep, sat up against the wall at the end of Pidge’s bed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Oh my goodness I'm late! I'm so sorry, I've just been so busy all day. I hope this chapter will make up for it! I'm not very good at writing Hunk I don't feel like though... Let me know what you think! I know I suck T-T Hopefully the next chapter will make up for it! ;)
> 
> Oh! So about the pods. I'm not a huge fan of them just being some kind of ex machina that will heal anything. So, I tried to set some rules for this fic. Basically, they're sleeping pods. They put your body in a stasis that allows it to heal itself without being interrupted by any kind of outside force. They speed up the process a bit as well. There's also medicines that can be added to the stasis of the pod to help fight viruses. But usually only viruses such as a cold, flu, or stomach bug. They cannot fight naturally occurring infections, like what Pidge has. Yes, it could heal the burnt tissue she has, but their main concern is with her infection. When it comes to Lance, he has multiple skin abrasions, that will heal in the pod, but will scar. The poison in his system combined with the medicine Coran put in and his own antibodies should dissolve. I hope this helps clear some things up!


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Awake and alive.

When Pidge woke up, it was violent. She saw flames, and they were surrounding her. Her body was on fire. She called out for Lance, he had to save her. She was going to die. She reached out for him, but only grabbed air. As her fuzzy vision started to focus, she realized she wasn’t in a fire at all, she was in her room. She was sitting upright, her arm still extended forward. Her heart was pounding against her chest. Her skin was cold and sweaty. Her shoulder ached terribly.

 

“Pidge?” A familiar voice said worriedly. Pidge shifted her gaze from the end of her hand to just beyond it, where Hunk was sitting on the edge of her bed. She looked him up and down, still trying to ground herself in the present. He was wearing grey shorts and a black fitted tank, with no shoes or his headband.

 

“Hunk…” She responded, and winced a bit. Her throat felt raw and dry.

 

“You don’t sound so good.” He said, standing up. “Hold on, let me get you some water.” Pidge gasped and grabbed his sleeve, feeling anxious and small.

 

“Wait, no…don’t leave.” She whimpered quietly. Hunk gave her a sympathetic look and sat back down.

 

“Okay, it’s okay, I’m right here.” He said, placing a hand on her arm. She exhaled shakily.

 

“What…was I just dreaming?” She asked, putting a hand on her chest. She couldn’t figure out why, but she felt a slight emptiness. Something was missing. Hunk’s face fell and he looked a little confused.

 

“No. Well, maybe. You don’t remember anything?” He asked, eyes shifting between her face and her left side. She followed his eyes.

 

Her heart thumped in her ears as she stared, unable to believe what she was seeing. Her shoulder just…ended. No fingers, no hand, no arm. Nothing. Just her shoulder and nothing else. She couldn’t look away. The weird part was that she could feel it. Her arm was there, it had to be, she just couldn’t see it. She tried to reach out with it, but nothing happened. She moved her right arm and touched the bandages, then felt a ripple of pain travel throughout her body. She winced, but kept her eyes on her shoulder.

 

“Pidge?” Hunk said slowly, catching her attention. She tore her eyes away and stared into the honey eyes of her friend. “Are you okay?”

 

“I’ll…I’ll let you know…” Pidge responded in a shaky voice. Hunk frowned and touched her forehead.

 

“You still have a fever, but it’s gone down a lot. That’s good.” He said, gently running his fingers through her hair. She sighed and leaned into his touch, feeling a little touch starved for some reason. “Shiro should be in here soon to give you your shot.”

 

“Shot?” Pidge asked as he took his hand away. He nodded slowly.

 

“Yeah. You’ve had a really bad infection, so we’ve been giving you some Altean medicine every day.” He said, fiddling with his fingers.

 

“Every day?” Pidge repeated. “How long have I…what happened?”

 

“This is day four I believe?” Pidge’s jaw dropped. She’d been sleeping for four days with a missing arm?

 

“What happened?” She repeated slowly, looking down. Hunk sighed and leaned back a bit.

 

“You really don’t remember?” He asked, looking uncomfortable. She shook her head. “Well, you got caught in an explosion, and then got a really bad infection.”

 

“Where’s Lance? Did he get caught in it too?” Pidge asked, looking back up.

 

“He’s in a pod. He wasn’t really caught in it, but he got attacked.” He explained. He kept withdrawing into himself, obviously nervous. Pidge noticed a cut along his cheek, and reached out to brush it with her thumb.

 

“You got hurt too.” She said. He gave her a confused look, then laughed a little.

 

“Your fever is still getting to you, huh? I think your injury is a bit more serious than a cut.” He said with a sympathetic smile. Pidge dropped her hand, feeling a little off balance.

 

“I do feel a little weird…” She said slowly, wavering a little. For a moment she felt like she was falling. “But I want to get up. I have to see Lance.” She started to swing her feet over the edge of the bed, but Hunk grabbed her ankles with one hand.

 

“Woah, wait, you’re in no condition to get up yet.” He said sternly. She glared at him.

 

“Hunk, this is all my fault, I have to make sure he’s okay.”

 

“Your fault?” Hunk repeated, giving her a concerned look. “How is any of this your fault?” Pidge hesitated, searching her memories as tears welled up in her eyes.

 

“I hit the wrong button. On the keypad.” She admitted. He just stared at her, confused. “That’s why it self destructed, it knew I was trying to hack into it. I remember getting kicked out of the program, and then this loud beeping started. I tried to back away from it, but this…thing grabbed my wrist. It was so loud…and there was so much fire.” She stopped. Her heart was racing, eyes wide as she stared down at her legs.

 

“Pidge, it’s okay, calm down.” Hunk said soothingly. He stood up and moved to her side so he could rub her back in calming circles. She started to mellow out and sighed.

 

Suddenly, the door opened, and Pidge snapped her head up to look at who had entered. It was Shiro. He had dark circles under his eyes, and his shoulders were slumped forward. He had a little tray in his hands, and there was a large syringe on it. He widened his eyes as he looked at her.

 

“You’re awake.” He said slowly, as if he was trying to process it. She nodded.

 

“I’m awake.” Shiro ran a hand through his hair and looked at Hunk for a moment. It seemed to Pidge like they were having some kind of silent conversation. He looked back at her, and it looked like he was barely holding it together. He handed the tray to Hunk, then hugged Pidge gently.

 

“I’m so glad you’re okay.” He said weakly. Pidge was surprised. She had never seen Shiro appear so weak before. He seemed so soft, so gentle. She usually saw him as this hard, natural born leader. Now she felt like she had to comfort him, more than he wanted to comfort her. Seeing him like this was off-putting. “How are you feeling?”

 

“Sore…weird…confused.” She responded. She glanced at her left side again. “Mostly sore…” Shiro gave her a sympathetic look and sat down next to Hunk.

 

“Yeah, you’ll be sore for a few weeks.” He said softly. Pidge looked at his Galra arm, suddenly feeling even more upset. Tears threatened to spill over, and she blinked them away. When she looked back up, Shiro was now holding the syringe. “You’re not afraid of needles, are you?”

 

“I’m not a baby.” Pidge snapped. Shiro chuckled a little.

 

“I’m not either. And I’m scared of snakes.” He said with a smile.

 

“I’m scared of lots of things.” Hunk added. Pidge rolled her eyes and held out her arm. She was a little weary of needles, but they had apparently been giving her these shots in her sleep for a few days now. Shiro grabbed her wrist gently. It was surprisingly easy to see her veins, and she realized she was probably sicker than she thought. She looked away and scrunched her eyes closed as Shiro pushed the needle into her arm. She tried not to make any kind of noise, but she couldn’t help the anxious whimper that escaped. After a minute, she felt the metal leave her arm, and there was the warm press of a square of gauze.

 

“That’s it. You may not need another, either.” Shiro said, taking the tray back from Hunk.

 

“I didn’t know you knew how to give shots.” Pidge said with a sigh.

 

“Well, I don’t, really. But I had very basic medical training before Kerberos.” Shiro explained. He hummed in thought. “You probably need some water, right?” 

 

“I want to get it myself.” She responded bitterly.

 

“Yeah, she wants to get up. But I told her she needed to rest.” Hunk said, earning a glare from Pidge. Shiro smiled at him, then looked back at Pidge.

 

“Sure, let’s get you out of bed so you can get something to drink.” He said. Pidge almost laughed at the look on Hunk’s face.

 

“Are you sure about this?” He asked, looking at Shiro like he was crazy. Shiro shrugged.

 

“She can do it.” Pidge cracked a small smile at Shiro and started to swing her legs over the bed. Hunk quickly hopped up and moved to her side. She was determined to stand on her own without help, but as soon as she put weight on her feet she was a wobbly mess. She reached out for Hunk, and he grabbed her arm. He steadied her quite a bit. 

 

“Woah, thanks, Hunk.” Pidge said weakly, her legs feeling a bit numb. Hunk held her elbow and her wrist, and she leaned into him. She couldn’t understand why she was so wobbly.

 

The three of them made their way out into the dining hall slowly. Allura was in there, leaning against the table and talking to Coran. She looked serious and almost as tired as Shiro. She glanced over and stopped talking, a look of shock on hers and Coran’s faces.

 

“Oh, Pidge! You’re awake!” She exclaimed, walking over to Pidge and Hunk. Shiro moved over to talk to a still shocked Coran, touching the princess’ shoulder as her passed. Allura glanced at Pidge’s left side and gave her a sympathetic look. “How are you feeling?”

 

Allura was very uncomfortable, Pidge could tell that right away. There was pity practically dripping from the princess’ lips, and that left a bad taste in the paladin’s mouth. Hunk and Shiro were bad enough, but Allura wasn’t even trying to hide her sympathetic tone. Pidge hated people pitying her. It was all they did when her father and brother went missing, and it was all they were going to do now.

 

“I’m…okay.” Pidge answered after a moment, not wanting to make the princess even more uncomfortable. She apparently wasn’t very convincing. Allura still had that sad look on her face.

 

“Here you are, number 5.” Coran said, not sounding as peppy as usual. He held a glass of water out to Pidge. “I’d imagine you’re thirsty after being asleep for four days.”

 

Hunk let go of Pidge’s arm so she could take the glass. She took it from Coran, wavering a bit, and sat down at the long table. She took a drink from her glass and exhaled slowly, feeling a bit better.

 

Pidge’s head had felt fuzzy ever since she woke up. Everything around her didn’t feel quite real, and she wasn’t convinced that she wasn’t still dreaming. All of her memories were foggy. She could barely reach back to the Garrison, let alone her life before that. She still remembered her family, but she couldn’t quite remember what they looked like. She remembered having a dog, or maybe it was a cat? No, it was definitely a dog. But she couldn’t place the breed. She suddenly realized everyone was looking at her, and shook her head.

 

“How’s Lance?” She asked, not making eye contact with anyone. There were a few beats of silence before Allura spoke up.

 

“Well, he should be able to come out of the pod either today or tomorrow. He’s healing up nicely it seem. We just have to wait for the last bits of poison to exit his system.” She explained, sitting next to Pidge.

 

“Poison?” Pidge repeated, looking up at Allura, then at Hunk. The Hawaiian looked like he wanted to shrink away. “Jesus, what else don’t I know?” No one answered her. She suppressed a growl by taking another drink of water. She was a little too light headed to be getting irritated.

 

“It’s okay, Pidge. He’ll be fine.” Shiro said, leaning against the edge of the table. “Try to focus on recovering.” Pidge rolled her eyes and set her cup down a little harder than intended.

 

“Recovering from what?” She asked sharply, making direct eye contact with Shiro. Normally, she wouldn’t do anything like this, but Shiro seemed exhausted and Pidge didn’t care what she said. “Woo-hoo, I lost an arm. It’s not coming back. Oh well.” She said, keeping her glare at Shiro. The black paladin seemed to almost glare back, but he sighed instead.

 

“Pidge, I don’t think this has really…sunken in yet.” Coran said. “How about I get you something to eat?”

 

“I’m not hungry.” Pidge muttered in response. “I want to see Lance.”

 

“Alright, let’s go see him then.” Allura said awkwardly. She stood back up and held her hand out to Pidge. Pidge stared at Allura’s hand for a moment, then stood up without taking it. She pushed past the princess and started walking towards the med bay. She really didn’t want to talk to anyone anymore, but she had to see Lance. He was the last think she remembered, and at this point she wasn’t completely sure he was real. Hopefully seeing Lance would ground her back in reality. Hopefully.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tada! She lives!! She probably shouldn't be from a scientific standpoint, but whatever. I can't kill my favorite. :)


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> ANGST

Keith jolted awake suddenly as the lights came on. He was leaning against Lance’s pod, the metal making his back cold. He regretted not grabbing his jacket after his shower as a shiver ran up his spine. His eyes slowly adjusted to the overhead light, and he had to rub them a few times. When he looked up, he gasped as he saw Pidge walking in, followed by Shiro, Hunk, Allura, and Coran. He honestly didn’t expect Pidge to even live, much less be up walking around and looking…fairly irritated.

 

It didn’t take long for Keith to figure out why she looked so mad. Everyone around her had a look of sympathy on their face. Keith could tell right away Pidge didn’t want to be pitied. So he wasn’t going to do it.

 

“Pidge. You’re alive.” He said, standing up slowly. He hadn’t been feeling well the past few days, and was trying to keep it from Shiro. Passing out from standing up too quickly would be a dead giveaway.

 

“I’m alive.” She responded tiredly. Keith looked her up and down, lingering on her shoulder for only a second.

 

“You look like shit.” He said, crossing his arms. Shiro and Hunk’s eyes widened, while Allura and Coran shot him glares. But Pidge just looked surprised for a second. Then she laughed. It wasn’t very loud or long, but it was a laugh.

 

“You look like shit too.” She retorted, smirking ever so slightly. The small group behind her now turned their looks to her, all surprised and confused. Keith winked subtly at Shiro, who was sending him a confused look.

 

“Do I?” Keith asked, looking down at himself. He probably did. Pidge moved like she was going to cross her arms, but stopped herself and glanced at her shoulder.

 

“Yeah. Are you sick?” She asked. Her tone was off, and Keith assumed she was still feeling the effects of her infection.

 

“No.” Keith answered as sincerely as he could, sending a glance Shiro’s way. “Are you?”

 

“Probably.” Pidge said with a scoff. She stepped up in front of the pod, her demeanor returning to irritation. She scowled up at the boy in the pod, face wrinkling in concern. Keith almost jumped when she turned to him quickly.

 

“What?” Keith asked defensively.

 

“Tell me what happened.” She demanded, face determined. “Allura said he was poisoned.” Keith looked over at Allura and Coran, who were checking Lance’s vitals. Allura gave him a sheepish look.

 

“That’s it?” Keith asked, looking back down at the small girl in front of him. “What else were you told?”

 

“Nothing.” Pidge responded in a dark tone. “Just that my shoulder got blown off. Which is kind of a given.” Anger suddenly spiked in Keith.

 

“Is there a reason we haven’t caught Pidge up on everything?” He asked loudly, not addressing anyone in particular. The room was dead quiet as everyone looked at him in surprise. “Well?”

 

“Keith…” Shiro stepped forward, ready to simmer Keith down like he had done so many times before.

 

“No, seriously, why didn’t you guys explain everything when she woke up?” Keith asked, glaring at Shiro.

 

“Well, I guess we just thought we should catch her up slowly instead of all at once.” Hunk said nervously.

 

“Why?” Keith retorted quickly, thoroughly confused and irritated. “It’s not like she’s some delicate flower, she’s a paladin of Voltron for fuck’s sake.”

 

“I’m right here!!” Pidge yelled, causing everyone to go silent again. Keith chanced a look at her, and could almost see the steam rising from her head.

 

“Sorry.” He said quietly.

 

“No, you don’t apologize. You’re right.” The small girl said angrily. “Keith is absolutely right, why am I being kept in the dark? I can take it!”

 

“Pidge, I really don’t think—“

 

“I don’t give a fuck what you think!” Pidge interrupted Shiro. “I am the only one here who has no idea what happened after the explosion, and I have every right to know! You guys can’t just hide it from—“

 

“Pidge you died!!” Hunk shouted, causing everyone in the room to jump. He slapped a hand over his mouth. Keith could probably hear a pin drop in the silence. “Twice…”

 

“What…?” Pidge whispered, eyes darting between Keith, Hunk, and Shiro. She was frozen in place, not moving a muscle. Shiro sighed and placed a comforting hand on Hunk’s shoulder.

 

“Pidge, things were so much worse than you think.” He said after a moment. “First your heart stopped after you lost so much blood. We could see every vein in your body. Hunk had to revive you, thank God he knows CPR. You were completely delusional after the infection set in. Then you had a seizure and died again. Keith revived you in some amazing stroke of luck.” Shiro paused for a moment, trying to work up the courage to talk about the experience. “We’re not entirely sure what happened to Lance, but he was so terrified for you. Keith found him against a tree with a spear in his stomach, and that spear turned out to be poisoned.” Pidge now looked pale.

 

“Okay…” She said quietly after a few more minutes of silence. She looked so small. “Thank you guys…for saving my life. Twice.” She finally looked up, making eye contact with Hunk.

 

“I hate to interrupt, but it looks like Lance is ready to come out of the pod.” Coran said tentatively.

 

“Really?” Keith asked, perking up.

 

“Yes, his vitals have returned to normal. He’ll have some scars, but he should be just fine.” Allura said, looking just as stressed as everyone else from the previous conversation.

 

“Let’s let him out then.” Shiro said, starting to return to normal. Hunk, Shiro, Pidge, and Coran all huddled close in front of the pod, with Keith standing next to it. Allura pressed a few buttons.

 

A cold blast of air hit Keith’s face as the pod’s door whooshed open. Lance stepped out, wobbly on his feet. His eyes were still closed and he looked like he was sleepwalking. He staggered towards Keith, who caught him as he fell into his arms.

 

“Woah, Lance, are you okay?” He asked, face flushing ever so slightly. Everyone else inched closer. Lance’s eyes opened slowly, and he looked up at Keith.

 

“Keith? Is that you?” He asked sleepily. Keith raised a brow in confusion.

 

“Of course it’s me.” He answered. Lance blinked slowly.

 

“How’re you feeling, buddy?” Hunk asked, stepping forward a bit. Lance turned his head toward Hunk, but it didn’t seem like his eyes quite met the boy.

 

“Hunk?” He asked, standing on his own, but still holding onto Keith. “I’m okay, but…” He trailed off.

 

“But what?” Shiro asked.

 

“Why is it so dark in here?” Lance asked, squinting. Keith froze and exchanged looks with the other paladins. It was blindingly bright in the room, in fact, Keith’s eyes still hurt from waking up to it.

 

“It’s…not dark in here.” Coran said, looking up at the lights. “It’s just as bright as usual.” Lance made a confused face, gripping Keith’s arms tighter.

 

“No, it isn’t.” He said lowly. “I can’t see a damn thing.” Everyone stayed silent for a few moments, looking at each other confused. Allura pushed her way through the others and walked right up to Lance and Keith. She was holding a small, silver device.

 

“Lance, tilt your head up.” She said softly. Lance cracked a smile.

 

“Hey, pretty lady. Turn the lights on so I can see your gorgeous face.” Keith couldn’t help the eye roll. Allura sighed heavily and tilted Lance’s head up herself by gently grabbing his chin.

 

“Stay still.” Keith found himself holding his breath as Allura lifted the device and shined a light in Lance’s eyes. His pupils didn’t dilate at all. Keith saw the look on the princess’ face, and his suspicions were confirmed.

 

“What?” Shiro asked, obviously disturbed by the look on Allura’s face.

 

“He’s…he’s blind.” She said slowly. Lance’s entire body tensed in Keith’s arms, and he looked at the blue paladin’s face. His eyes were wide, and tears were already welling up. A few spilled over before he inhaled sharply.

 

“Y-you’re just fucking with me.” He said, shaking. “Just turn the lights on, okay?” Keith gripped Lance protectively.

 

“Lance…” Hunk started. Lance just laughed nervously.

 

“P-please…tell me you’re joking…” He said, laughter fading into crying. “This…it can’t be real…”

 

Hunk was the first one to wrap both Lance and Keith into a hug, squeezing tight. Keith didn’t expect to be hugged, but he figured it was because he was hugging Lance himself. Shiro joined in next, maybe needing it as much as Lance. Allura and Coran wormed their way in together, and Keith was feeling very warm. Lance was sobbing now, shaking the whole group. After a few seconds, he stopped.

 

“Where’s Pidge.” He said urgently, blindness forgotten. Keith made eye contact with Pidge as the group hug broke apart slowly, wondering why she didn’t join. She looked terrified and heartbroken at the same time. “We didn’t lose her, did we? Please tell me she lived.”

 

“Lance…” Pidge said, stepping forward a little. She reached her arm out to Lance. Lance looked in her direction and reached his hand out too. Pidge gently grabbed his hand, trying not to scare him. “I’m right here.” Her voice was breaking, and there were fresh tears on her rosy cheeks.

 

“You’re alive!” Lance cried happily, a smile blooming on his face. Everyone stepped back as he pulled Pidge forward into a tight hug. Pidge cried out in pain as he wrapped his arms around her shoulders, causing Keith to cringe and Lance to immediately let go. “Fuck, I’m so sorry.” He said, tears pouring down his face.

 

“I-it’s okay…” Pidge said through clenched teeth, gripping her gauze covered shoulder. “I’m the one who should be apologizing.”

 

“Why?” Allura asked suddenly, looking at Pidge. The green paladin swallowed hard and bit her lip.

 

“I…this is all my fault…” She started. Hunk shook his head.

 

“Pidge, no, it isn’t your fault.” He said.

 

“Yes it is!” She exclaimed. “I wasn’t paying enough attention! I hit the wrong button, I caused the explosion!” Keith looked away, overcome with a lot of emotions at once.

 

Pidge was an expert hacker, how could she have possibly messed up and caused an explosion? There was just no way. Keith didn’t want to blame her, but he felt the need to blame someone. He shook his head quickly, trying to shake the thoughts.

 

Keith grabbed Lance’s wrist and pulled him away from the group. He had to get his friend away from the chaos. Lance needed to be somewhere quiet and safe. Keith needed to be somewhere quiet and safe. He wanted them to be safe together. Alone. He exited the room, towing a confused Lance behind him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I hope you guys are still having fun while I make you suffer :)


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Blind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Important notes at the end!

Lance gripped Keith’s arm tightly as they walked through the walls. He was going to ask Keith why they had left so quickly, but he decided against it. He figured Keith was just overwhelmed, just like Lance had felt. He hadn’t really wanted to be around everyone. He could feel paranoia creeping up on him, since he couldn’t see anything. He could almost believe it was just a prank and that all the lights were off, but their voices were all so serious. Everything Lance saw was black, but some things were blacker than others. He felt like he could almost see the outline of Keith walking in front of him, but maybe it was his mind playing tricks on him.

 

“Lance, are you okay?” Keith asked as they continued to walk. Lance bit into his lip for the thousandth time, beginning to taste blood.

 

“I don’t know Keith. This is…terrifying.” He said slowly. He felt like he could be completely honest with Keith. It was a feeling he’s always felt with him.  
“Lance, you will be okay. I promise.” He said gently. It was a new voice for Keith.

 

The opening of a door startled Lance a bit, but he realized it must’ve meant that they were at his room. They stepped inside, and Keith lowered him onto his bed. He sighed in relief as he felt the comforting blankets under his hand. He felt Keith shift, and Lance grabbed his leather sleeve.

 

“Wait. Don’t leave.” He said, feeling his voice starting to break. Keith stayed silent, but he sat back down.

 

“I won’t leave you. I promise.” He said after a moment. Lance grabbed Keith’s jacket with both hands, pulling the boy closer. He was shaking from holding back tears, then he felt Keith’s arms wrap around him. “Lance. Cry.” He said in the softest voice he had ever heard out of the red paladin. The voice alone pushed him over the edge.

 

He grabbed Keith as tightly as he could and started sobbing into his chest. He couldn’t stop the tears anymore. He pressed his face hard into Keith’s body, and wrapped his arms around the man’s waist. He was having trouble breathing through all the sobs wracking his body. Keith was petting his hair gently, trying to soothe him. But it wasn’t working.

 

How was he supposed to be a paladin with no eyesight? He was supposed to be the team’s sharpshooter, but he probably couldn’t even hold his bayard correctly anymore. His perfect aim was gone. His piloting was gone. His coordination was gone. He couldn’t bear the thought of having to leaving his new family because he wasn’t useful anymore. They were going to find a new blue paladin and he would be shoved into the background.

 

“Lance!” Keith exclaimed, pulling Lance from his thoughts. It seemed like Keith had been saying his name for a while. Lance looked up, hoping he was looking at Keith.

 

“Keith…” He whimpered.

 

“Lance, you have to breathe. Please.” Keith said. He sounded so tired. Lance sobbed again.

 

“Keith, how am I supposed to be useful anymore?” He cried, once again burying his face in Keith’s chest. He had never been so close to the red paladin before, but he was hoping he could get used to it. Keith felt like a safe haven to Lance, and he never wanted to leave.

 

“Lance, we all love you.” Keith said slowly. He felt warmer for some reason. “You got hurt, and that’s not going to change our love for you. We will figure something out. You are still the blue paladin. You will always be—“ He stopped, erupting into a coughing fit. His body shuddered against Lance, causing him to sit up. The coughs sounded horrible, heavy, and wet.

 

“Keith…?” Lance sniffed, reaching to the sound. The cough was now muffled, and Lance assumed Keith was now coughing into his arm.

 

“I-I’m…fine.” Keith choked out between coughs. His coughing finally died down, and he was left with raspy breaths. He grabbed Lance again.

 

“Are you okay?” Lance asked, wiping his face.

 

“Lance, I’m fine.” Keith repeated, gripping Lance tighter.

 

Lance sighed softly into Keith’s chest. He smelled good, and that was something he had never noticed before. He must’ve just taken a shower; he smelled like the soap they used in the castle. Lance slowly ran his hand up Keith’s shoulder and to his head, trying to see if his hair was wet.

 

“What are you doing?” Keith asked, confused. He didn’t sound mad, which relieved Lance.

 

“You smell good.” He said weakly. “I was trying to see if you had just taken a shower.” Keith laughed lightly.

 

“About an hour ago, yeah. Is that really important?” His voiced turned a little serious. Lance dropped his hand and wrapped it back around Keith’s waist with a sigh. He knew what he was implying.

 

“I don’t want to talk about it…” He said slowly, tears already welling back up. Keith started to pet Lance’s hair again.

 

“Okay…” He said quietly. Lance suddenly felt like he was falling for a moment, and almost started to panic. Then he realized Keith was just falling back onto the bed. He had pulled Lance forward onto his chest, and now they were lying down.

 

Lance exhaled, his heart slowing a little. He nuzzled into Keith’s chest and took in the other man’s scent and feel. It was so safe and warm in his arms, and he could stay there forever. His legs twisted into his friend’s slowly, as not to disturb him. Keith was breathing slowly, his heart rate steady against Lance’s ear. Lance figured he was beginning to fall asleep, and he honestly didn’t want that to happen. He didn’t want to be alone, and Keith was the best person he felt that he could be with. But he also didn’t want to disturb Keith. His coughing had really worried him. So, Lance sighed and held the red paladin tightly.

 

The door sliding open made Lance jump. He turned his head toward the sound, realizing too late that he couldn’t see the intruder.

 

“Hunk.” Keith said, also startling Lance. Keith noticed this and pet his shoulder comfortingly.

 

“Hunk?” Lance asked, trying to feel his best friend’s presence.

 

“Lance, are you okay?” His voice came, and Lance relaxed. He realized his face was probably red and puffy, not to mention the wet spot on Keith’s shirt.

 

“No.” Lance answered truthfully, earning an affectionate shoulder squeeze from Keith. “I don’t know. I’m upset. I can’t see anymore. But…I’m alive.” The bed shifted near his feet, and he assumed Hunk had sat down.

 

“Sorry if I’m not being very helpful, but maybe it’s temporary?” Hunk offered. Lance hadn’t thought about that yet. That could be true, this could all be temporary.

 

“I hope so…” Lance said, feeling a little smile threatening to show through.

 

“I hope so too.” Hunk said. There was something off about his friend’s voice. He sounded like a hollowed out version of himself, tired, and even a little depressed. It made Lance worried. He had never heard that kind of voice from Hunk.

 

“Hunk, are you okay?” He asked, reaching out with his foot to touch Hunk’s arm. He felt Keith tense under him, which made him wonder what Hunk’s face looked like. Suddenly, his bigger friend burst out in laughter, confusing Lance further. The laughter was wrong. It wasn’t Hunk’s laugh. It wasn’t happy and cheerful. It didn’t brighten the room. It was bitter and dark. Lance suddenly felt cold.

 

“What is with you guys asking if I’m okay?” He asked, stopping his laughter almost a little too soon. “You and Pidge both. I mean seriously, I didn’t even get hurt.”

 

“Hunk?” Keith asked worriedly, making Lance’s own concern spike more. He heard Hunk sigh.

 

“Look, I’m okay, Lance. Really.” He said. “Anyway, Shiro wants you guys to come to the dining hall. Apparently we’re having some kind of ‘Paladin Bonding Session’ per the request of him and Allura.”

 

“Why?” Keith asked, sitting both himself and Lance up. Their legs untwined.

 

“Because…just all the shit that’s happened.” Hunk said, and the weight of his body left the bed. Now Lance knew he wasn’t okay. Hunk never cursed unless he was really stressed or upset. The first time he’d heard a swear out of Hunk’s mouth in a long time was in the cave a few days ago.

 

Suddenly Lance was being pulled up by Keith’s gloved hand. It caught him off guard, and he ended up falling forward onto Keith’s chest again. Though, at least they were standing now. He never wanted to leave his chest. It was so comforting just to listen to the gentle pounding against his skin. Feeling the muscle against his face. He noticed he was blushing.

 

“Let’s go then, better not keep Shiro waiting.” Keith said as Lance stood up straight.

 

Hunk led the way out of the room and into the empty, echoing hallway. Lance clung to both Keith and Hunk, letting them lead him to the dining hall. He tried his best not to stumble, but it was hard since he couldn’t see his friends’ feet. He accidentally stepped on their heels a couple times and he mumbled out a sorry each time.

 

Lance couldn’t shake this impending sense of doom as they neared the dining hall. He wasn’t used to having to completely trust his teammates with everything. And now he was starting to worry that this special meeting was going to end with him heading home and no longer being a part of Voltron.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! So, I have reached the end of my original draft. For an explanation, I work better when I write and then rewrite and separate into chapters or segments. This chapter is as far as I've gotten in my draft. SO what I'm going to do instead of updating every day(which I forgot to do yesterday oops), I'm going to try to update every other day. On the days I'm not updating, I will be adding to my draft. So hopefully now you guys aren't going to be all "Where's the chapter D:" Haha, so once again, thank you so much for reading!! I'm so glad this story is doing so well, it makes my heart smile so much.


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Anxieties.

Hunk sank down in a chair across from Pidge when they got into the dining hall. He was feeling worse than he ever had. He was nauseous, but it was different than usual. It felt like his stomach was twisting, and not like he was going to throw up. He wanted to, just to relieve the pain, but it wasn’t going to happen. He pressed his hands tightly into his stomach and laid his head on the table.

 

“You good, Hunk?” Pidge asked. Hunk looked up at her with a small groan. She was leaning on her arm and drumming her fingers against her head.

 

“My stomach just hurts.” He answered as Keith sat Lance down next to him. Pidge hummed in response.

 

“So what’s with this bonding exercise?” Lance asked quietly.

 

“I have no idea.” Pidge answered. Hunk gazed over at Shiro and Keith, who were talking about something a few feet away. They both looked exhausted. As Hunk looked back to his friends at the table, he realized they looked exhausted too. Hunk felt pretty exhausted. The entire team was worn out.

 

“Okay, Team Voltron.” Shiro started, walking to the table with Keith behind him.

 

“What’s this bonding exercise about?” Lance asked, keeping his head tilted down.

 

“Well, I thought maybe we could try to get the lions working again.” Shiro said, sitting down next to Pidge across from Lance. 

 

“The lions are down?” Pidge asked, looking surprised. Hunk looked at her, confused. How could she have forgotten that? She glanced towards Hunk, and bit her lip. “I mean, still down? The lions are still down?” She corrected herself, looking back at Shiro.

 

“Uh, yeah.” Shiro answered, seeming a little confused himself.

 

“We never got off planet?” Lance asked, tilting his head up. “Are you kidding? What have you guys been doing for four days?”

 

“We’ve been worried about you and Pidge.” Keith said quietly.

 

“And we have no idea what’s wrong with them.” Shiro continued. “That’s where you come in, Pidge.” Pidge sat up straight and cocked her head to the side.

 

“Me?”

 

“Well of course, you’re our tech expert.” Shiro said.

 

“I don’t know anything about magical robot lions!” Pidge objected. “Other than piloting Green, of course.”

 

“You could at least try.” Lance said. Pidge rolled her eyes and stood up.

 

“Fine, let’s go.” She said with a huff. Hunk stood up as well, even though his stomach was still twisting. He couldn’t figure out why he felt so sick.

 

“Hold on.” Shiro said gently putting his hand on Pidge’s right shoulder and pushing her back down. “We need to talk about things first.”

 

“Do we really?” Lance asked skeptically. Keith sighed and finally sat down.

 

“Yes, we do. All of us.” He said. Hunk sat back down with a small sigh.

 

“So what are we talking about?” Pidge asked, still looking irritated. She drummed her fingers on the table, leaning back in her seat.

 

“Well, I’ve been thinking that you guys probably need to talk about…what happened.” Shiro said. Hunk noticed that Shiro was still looking pretty off. Ever since they first entered the cave, their leader had seemed weak and vulnerable. Hunk really wanted to just hug everyone in the room. He wanted to make them all feel better.

 

“Why do we need to talk about it?” Lance asked, his eyes fixated on the wall behind Shiro. His voice sounded guarded, and Hunk felt sad for him. He didn’t want his friend to change into someone bitter and defensive because of this mission.

 

“Because something big and life changing happened. For all of us.” Shiro said softly. Pidge scoffed from next to him.

 

“Really? All of us? Lance and I drew the short straws, don’t you think?” She said bitterly.

 

“Pidge.” Keith said as a warning.

 

“Keith.” She shot back with equal bite.

 

Hunk felt like he couldn’t take this. His friends all seemed so divided, and it was tearing him apart. There was so much tension in the room, and it felt empty and cold. Pidge’s scowl was making Hunk not even want to look at her, and that hurt him. Lance’s entire air was dark and sad. Keith was guarded and angry, but Hunk couldn’t place what he was angry about. And Shiro was obviously anxious and tired, but trying to stay strong.

 

“Guys, please. Why are you two so upset with us?” Shiro asked Pidge and Lance. Pidge rolled her eyes.

 

“I’m not even going to answer that.” She said bitterly.

 

“I will.” Lance said. They seemed to be communicating silently. “What makes you think that we’re upset with you?” He asked, leaning back in his seat and closing his eyes. “I mean we both lost a lot. Pidge basically lost half of herself, and I can’t even see you guys anymore. I won’t be able to see my loved ones ever again, even if I go back to them.”

 

“Just let us mourn, okay?” Pidge said slowly, her voice now more solemn. Hunk looked up at her and she met his eyes. He almost didn’t recognize her. She looked so pale and shut off from the world. “Woah, Hunk?” She said suddenly, leaning forward. Shiro and Keith’s attention suddenly turned to him and he felt like he wanted to shrink away. 

 

“Are you okay?” Keith asked. Hunk noticed his face was wet. He was crying. Everyone but Lance was staring at him, and he panicked. He stood up quickly and turned on his heels, speed walking out of the room.

 

Hunk marched down the hallway of the castle and down the stairs towards the entrance. He kept wiping his face, but the tears kept coming. His stomach kept twisting. He couldn’t figure out why he was so upset. His mind felt so muddled. He walked out of the castle an spotted the lions, still crashed where they left them. They were all within the limits of the particle barrier. Yellow was lying on his side, closest to the castle. Hunk walked over to his lion, desperate for the comfort the machine gave him. He pressed his palm to the robot’s cold surface and sighed, the tears finally stopping.

 

He could feel Yellow’s energy, but it was weak. He wondered why. They still had no idea why the lions had crashed. Hunk gently pressed his forehead to his lion. He felt like screaming. There were so many things swimming in his mind, he couldn’t think about just one. He shouldn’t be acting like this with his friends hurt and suffering. He heard small footsteps, and turned his head. He saw Pidge standing a few feet away from him, looking a little guilty and sad.

 

“Hunk, are you okay?” She asked in a small voice. Hunk groaned and turned around so that his back was pressed against his lion. He slid down to the ground and looked up at his friend.

 

“No.” He answered. Pidge sat next to him, gazing over at the green lion.

 

“Me either.” She said, bringing her knees to her chest. She wrapped her arm around her legs and sighed. “I’m sorry I’m being so mean to everyone.”

 

“I get it. It’s a defense mechanism.” Hunk responded, looking down at her. Her left shoulder was facing him, and he could now get a good look at the area that wasn’t covered by bandages. Her skin was burnt up her neck to the underside of her jaw. He wasn’t sure how he hadn’t noticed those before.

 

“You’re right. It is. I don’t want you guys to pity me.” Pidge said, leaning her head back.

 

“I’m sorry I did earlier.” Hunk said sincerely. Pidge met his eyes and smiled softly.

 

“It’s okay. I’ll try not to be such an ass.” She said. Hunk smiled at her, and stood up.

 

“You want to try to get the lions back online?” He asked, holding out his hand. Pidge nodded and took it, and he pulled her to her feet. But he didn’t stop there. He pulled her into his chest and hugged her, trying his best to avoid her left side. He buried his face into her hair and let a few small sobs escape, trying to get his emotions out of the way quickly. She hesitantly wrapped her arm around his back and rubbed it gently.

 

“Hunk…” She said softly.

 

“I’m sorry, I’m just so overwhelmed. I don’t know what to do. You died…you were dead. I almost lost you. And then I almost lost Lance. I don’t know what I would do without you two. You’re my closest friends…It’s like I don’t even want to be a paladin anymore. The risk is too high.” He cried, resting his chin on Pidge’s head.

 

“But we need you.” She seemed to finish for him. He nodded.

 

“The universe needs me.” He let Pidge go, since she had started trembling a bit. He realized a little late that the hug was probably causing her pain.

 

Hunk looked back up at his lion, then toward the entrance to the castle. Shiro and Keith were leading Lance outside, looking over at Hunk and Pidge worriedly. Hunk held a thumbs-up to them, and Pidge awkwardly did the same. They both smiled a little, and Keith whispered something to Lance, causing him to smile as well. The trio walked towards them.

 

“Hey.” Shiro seemed to offer in a gentle voice. Hunk smiled appreciatively.

 

“Hey.” He said back. “I’m sorry about that. I’ve just been a bit…stressed.” He wiped his face.

 

“Yeah, I understand, trust me.” Shiro said with a laugh. He looked down at Pidge. “So, we need to fix the lions.”

 

“Yes. We do.” She said, putting her hand on her hip. “I would bet my left arm that this planet has a weird electromagnetic field.” Lance burst into laughter, while Shiro, Keith, and Hunk all stared at Pidge in disbelief. She chuckled. “Too soon?”

 

“Yes.” Hunk answered, suppressing a laugh himself. Pidge smiled and walked over to the green lion.

 

“Hey girl.” She said softly. A low rumble came from the smaller lion, and the yellow of its eyes glowed bright. She stood up and leaned her head down to Pidge, who touched her tenderly.

 

“Woah, what?” Keith said, a little startled.

 

“Was that Green?” Lance asked, clinging to Keith’s arm. Hunk laughed a little in disbelief.

 

“Yeah.” He said softly.

 

“Someone direct me to Blue.” Lance said, while Pidge laughed excitedly. Hunk gently took Lance’s arm and walked him over to the blue lion. The machine didn’t even need Lance to touch her before she was standing up. Hunk backed away slowly as he felt the rumble of Blue’s growl in his chest. The lion curled herself around her paladin, growling not letting up. She stood over him protectively.

 

“Holy shit.” Shiro breathed. He looked over at Green, and Hunk followed his gaze. 

 

The green lion’s eyes were fixated on the other paladins, and Hunk had a feeling she was angry. A chill ran up Hunk’s spine as the machine’s claws dug into the ground on either side of her paladin. Soon, the growls from the Blue and Green lions were deafening in the air.

 

“They know their paladins are hurt.” Keith said slowly. “That’s why they woke up and ours’ haven’t yet. They want to protect Lance and Pidge.”

 

“Good girl.” Lance said gently. The blue lion opened her mouth and lowered her ramp to her paladin.

 

Hunk wanted to go help Lance into his lion, but he was afraid of the beast for the first time ever. She was extraordinarily protective of her paladin. Luckily, Lance found his way to the ramp by himself, just as Keith moved to help. As his best friend walked up into his lion, Hunk couldn’t help but feel as though things were going to be okay.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi! It's been a few days. I know I said I'd upload every other day, but I had SO MUCH WRITER'S BLOCK with this chapter. You can kind of tell. In the beginning it's kind of choppy, I'm sorry about that! The next chapter will be better, I promise.


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lions

Lance was warm as he walked into his lion. Her presence was surrounding him, making him feel safe and protected. He wasn’t stumbling through the dark anymore; it was like he knew where to go. He touched a hand rail, and cocked his head. That hadn’t been there before. He held it and shrugged. He walked down the hallway and into the cockpit, feeling the low rumble of his lion’ growl in his chest and stomach. He reached his hand out and touched the chair, then guided himself so he could sit in it. The chair slid up and Lance gripped onto it so he didn’t fall forward.

 

_Open your eyes._

 

Lance gasped as he heard his lion speak to him. He opened his eyes and…saw. He couldn’t help the tears that fell onto his cheeks as he looked down at his teammates through his lion’s eyes. Everything seemed to have a blue overtone to it. It was just like he was a little colorblind, but he could see. He laughed and cried at the same time. Everyone’s faces looked so tired and stressed, which made Lance’s heart ache for them. Lance tried waving his hands I front of his face, but he couldn’t see them. As he looked down, the view from outside shifted downwards.

 

“Guys! I can see you!!” He yelled, hoping the speaker was on. The four other paladins looked up at him, and he felt like he was making eye contact with them. Keith smiled up at him, making Lance smile back, even though Keith couldn’t see him. Hunk seemed to laugh happily. Shiro smiled a little. Pidge waved, and Lance’s smile faded a little. It was…unsettling to see her without her left arm. He suddenly felt guilty. He should’ve been able to save her. 

 

Suddenly Lance felt hands on his shoulders and jumped. He couldn’t see the inside of his lion around him, so he tried to get away from the grip.

 

“Woah! Sorry, sorry.” It was Keith’s voice. Lance noticed that he wasn’t with the other paladins anymore. He stood from his seat, and everything went black again.

 

“Hey.” He said, sort of disappointed. He was hoping the vision would last.

 

“Blue let you see though her eyes?” Keith asked, replacing his hands on Lance’s shoulders. Lance laughed half-heartedly.

 

“Yeah, she did. You guys all look like shit.” He said jokingly. Keith scoffed.

 

“Yeah, whatever.” He said, and Lance could almost see the eye roll. “I told you that you could still be the blue paladin.” His voice was so genuine, it almost made Lance cry. Instead of crying, he wrapped his arms around Keith in a tight hug.

 

“Thank you, Keith.” He said. Keith hugged him back and pet his hair a few times. They broke away after about a minute or so.

 

“By the way, there’s a hand rail at the entrance to Blue. Was that always there?” Keith asked, leading Lance to the exit. Lance shook his head.

 

“No, I don’t know where it came from. I did notice it on my way in though.” He answered. Keith hummed in thought.

 

The pair of them exited Blue and joined the other paladins. Lance heard the steps of one of them approaching, then felt Hunk’s strong arms wrap around him. He relaxed a bit and hugged his best friend back.

 

“You saw us!” He said excitedly, letting Lance go. Lance laughed a little bit.

 

“Yeah I did, it was awesome!” He responded. “I wish it was permanent.”

 

“But this means you aren’t going to have any issues piloting again when the time comes.” Shiro’s voice approached. Another pair if footsteps approached the group as well, and Lance assumed it was Pidge.

 

“How’re we going to get the other lions back online?” The small girl asked, closer to Lance than he thought. “I mean, ours only came back because they wanted to protect us.”  
“I’m not sure.” Keith said from Lance’s left side. “But we need to get off this planet.” Lance hummed in agreement. The air around him smelled the same as the cave, but there wasn’t any faint blood smell.

 

“Well, we could try going inside the lions and waking them up like that.” Shiro offered.

 

“I think it’s a more mechanical disturbance, rather than them being asleep.” Hunk said. Pidge sighed at Lance’s right side.

 

“Well, let’s get to work.” She said. Right after she spoke, Lance heard a horrible popping noise right in his ear. It sounded like bones scraping together, and it made Lance’s teeth hurt. Then there was screaming. 

 

It was loud, ear-piercing and painful. Lance recoiled from the noise into Keith. Lance’s blood ran cold as the scream turned into choked sobbing. It took a second for him to process that it was Pidge making the noise, and now he was more concerned than scared. The warmth that Keith was providing left, and suddenly everything was cold and slow. He could hear Hunk calling out to Pidge, and Keith repeatedly asking what was wrong. He heard Shiro move, but he wasn’t saying anything. But the loudest noise Lance could hear was Pidge. She sounded like she was in so much pain, and Lance didn’t know why. Was it the popping noise he’d heard? His heart was pounding against his chest and he reached out to touch something, anything.

 

Lance was alone. He felt lost in endless space. The only thing he was touching was the ground with his feet. Other than that, he was completely alone. His ears started ringing, and the noises around him started to fade. He wanted to help Pidge, but he couldn’t find her or anyone else. His feet moved on their own, and he was stumbling backwards. He was beginning to panic. Then there were hands on his shoulders, pulling him back to reality.

 

“Lance! Calm down, it’s okay!” Keith said urgently. Keith, his only light in the endless darkness, had returned. Lance let out a shaky breath and gripped Keith’s arms after a few tries. He couldn’t hear Pidge anymore. He couldn’t hear Hunk or Shiro either.

 

“What’s going on? What happened?” Lance asked, trying to look around, but failing.

 

“I don’t know, Pidge just collapsed in pain.” Keith answered, pulling Lance closer to him. Lance gasped.

 

“I heard this noise. This popping noise right before she screamed. What was she doing? What was her body language?” He asked, gripping Keith’s arms hard. Keith winced a little bit before he answered.

 

“I don’t know, she rolled her shoulders back.” He said, confused. “Oh.” Keith seemed to realize what happened all at once. He started to move away from Lance. Lance grabbed Keith’s sleeves quickly and pulled him close.

 

“No! Don’t go! Not again!” Lance called desperately. Keith made a confused noise, but took Lance into his arms. “I’m sorry…I just…need you.”

 

“Hey, Lance, it’s okay.” Keith said slowly. “Sorry, you can hold onto me.”

 

“Where did Pidge go?” Lance asked.

 

“Hunk and Shiro took her inside. You didn’t hear that?” Keith asked. Lance shook his head.

 

“My ears were ringing…” He explained. “I was scared.”

 

“Yeah, me too.” Keith said. “Come on, let’s go make sure she’s okay. So we don’t have to be scared anymore.”

 

What Keith didn’t know was that Lance wasn’t scared because of Pidge. He was scared because he had been alone. He felt kind of selfish for being more concerned for himself, but he couldn’t help it. Those few moments without Keith he had felt like he was drowning. He didn’t want to be away from anyone after that.

 

They walked back into the castle wrapped around each other. As they walked further in, Lance could hear Pidge whimpering and Hunk and Shiro trying to console her.

 

“Don’t touch it!!” She yelled, sending chills up Lance’s spine.

 

“Okay, it’s okay.” He heard Hunk say. “Just try to keep your shoulders still.”

 

“I just…I rolled them back too far…Fuck…” Her breath was airy and broken, and Lance just wanted to hug her.

 

“Pidge, are you gonna be okay?” He asked as they approached. Pidge inhaled sharply.

 

“I-I’m okay…” She answered.

 

“I think you should get some rest, Pidge. Maybe we should wait a little while longer to get off planet.” Shiro said, obviously concerned.

 

“Y-yeah…I need to go…” Pidge whined, and Lance could tell she was still crying.

 

“Come on, I’ll take you to your room.” Hunk said, and their footsteps retreated.

 

Lance felt himself shiver, and instinctively moved closer to Keith. He felt the air around him, and realized it was colder. It was probably getting dark.

 

“Is it night time?” He asked, breaking the silence. 

 

“Yes.” Shiro answered, and Lance felt like running away. Shiro’s voice was so dark and guarded. He was scared of Shiro for the first time in his time of knowing him. He gripped Keith’s sleeve harder.

 

“I want to go to bed then. Please?” Keith tensed and turned towards Lance. 

 

“Yeah, come on.” He said softly. He directed Lance in one direction and started walking slowly. They stopped for a second and Lance heard Keith whisper to Shiro. “Calm down, it’s okay.” Then they kept walking.

 

Lance stayed silent as they walked through the hallways of the castle. Keith had one hand on the back of his neck, squeezing gently and reassuringly every few seconds. His other hand was holding Lance’s wrist, and Lance wanted nothing more than to hold that hand. Keith had been his beacon in this crazy storm. It made him appreciate the red paladin more than ever. His crush was growing ever stronger.

 

Lance always flirted with alien girls on missions, but it was Keith he was the most invested in. He always made sure Keith was watching when he talked to the girls. He had been so jealous when Keith had taken an interest in Rolo all those months ago. He clung to Keith, trying to convince himself to tell him how he felt. But he knew his feelings would never be reciprocated. So, he chose to stay content with Keith being his beacon. His precious light in the darkness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm really bad at this every other day stuff. I'm so sorry haha. Just like the last chapter, I had a lot of issues with this chapter. I'm still trying to figure out how to write blind Lance, and that may be my issue. I hope you guys aren't too mad! The next three chapters are going to be really angsty, prepare yourself.


	13. Chapter 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A Bad Night, Part 1

Keith opened Lance’s door with a shaky breath. He was feeling even worse than he had this morning, especially with Lance clinging onto him all day. He walked through the doorway with Lance behind him and pulled the blue paladin down to the bed. Lance landed with a small huff. Keith coughed into his elbow, then sat down next to him.

 

“Keith, I don’t feel good.” Lance whimpered. Keith looked over at him. His eyes were still glazed over, and Keith figured he should get used to that. But he looked pale and scared. Keith wanted to protect him.

 

“Lance, it’s okay.” Keith said, touching his shoulder.

 

“Is it?” Lance asked. Keith bit his lip. He wasn’t good at comforting people, especially not people he had a crush on. He pressed his forehead against Lance’s instinctively.

 

“Lance…It’s okay.” He repeated. He closed his eyes slowly, trying to see what Lance saw. A small sob escaped the other boy, and Keith put his hands on either side of his face. “Talk to me.”

 

“Keith, what is going on?” Lance cried. “Everything changed so fast. Our team is falling apart.”

 

“I know.” Keith said softly, feeling Lance’s tears on his thumbs.

 

“Can you hear her? She’s still in so much pain. That’s my fault.”

 

“Lance, stop worrying about Pidge for one second. Hunk has her, and she’ll be okay. It isn’t your fault.” Keith waited for a response, but was only met with Lance’s heavy breathing. “You’re blind now, and I know you have feelings about that. You can’t keep bottling them up. You have to talk about them.”

 

Lance buried his face in Keith’s shoulder and started crying again. He grabbed onto the fabric on the back of Keith’s shirt and just sobbed. It broke Keith’s heart to hear, especially with how much he was hearing it today. After he had left Lance to check on Pidge earlier, he realized he’d made a mistake. With Lance now being blind, Keith was sort of like his seeing-eye dog. His presence let Lance know where he was. He felt horrible for not realizing that sooner.

 

“Keith, what am I supposed to do when I forget what you look like?” Lance choked out. “When Blue let me look through her eyes, it was so amazing just to see the sky again. And it’s only been one day! I want to see again.” Keith made a noise in his throat, feeling horrible for Lance.

 

“Lance, I-“

 

“I can’t stand the thought of forgetting your face.” Lance continued. “I just can’t. You’re just so…I mean…”

 

“What are you…?” Keith didn’t understand the flood of emotions coming from Lance. His friend was very warm and his ears were red.

 

“I already can’t remember exactly what color your eyes are, and it’s killing me! Are they grey? Purple? I don’t know!”

 

“They’re sort of…both.” Keith answered, and he noticed Lance wasn’t crying anymore. He seemed kind of frustrated.

 

“That’s not my point!” Lance squeaked, pulling his head up and trying to look at Keith. He almost looked right at him, but fell just short of his eyes.

 

“What _is_ your point?” Keith asked, taken aback. Lance’s eyes rolled sloppily.

 

“I am in love with you, Keith!!” Lance shouted, and Keith felt like his heart stopped.

 

Was Lance serious? Keith had been crushing on him since their first mission together. He wasn’t sure if this news was good or if Lance was just saying things he didn’t mean. Keith felt the sudden need to close himself off and run away.

 

“Oh, fuck, Keith, I’m sorry! I shouldn’t have said it like that, it should’ve been more planned. Or I shouldn’t have said it at all, you probably don’t even—“ Keith cut Lance off by doing the only thing he could think of. He kissed him. 

 

Lance’s lips were soft and warm, and Keith could practically melt into them. They were wet from his tears and tasted salty, but nice. Lance let out a small gasp between them, then began to kiss back. Keith could feel the tears on his cheeks pressing against his own. Everything happening around them faded away as Keith’s body felt electrified. He pulled away after about a minute, and opened his eyes.

 

“I’m….sorry, I-I just…” Keith stammered. Lance kissed him quickly and smiled genuinely for the first time today.

 

“Really…?” He asked with a small laugh. “Do you like me?”

 

“Yeah.” Keith answered without thinking. He meant it though. Lance’s smile faded and his eyes turned dark. It was like a switch flipped.

 

“I…wish I could see your face right now…” He said slowly. The tears began to fall again and Keith’s heart sank. Lance grabbed Keith’s face. “What do you look like…?”

 

“Lance…” Keith put his hands over the other boy’s and sighed softly.

 

“Keith…I’ll never see my mama again…” Lance said in a weak voice. “I’m already forgetting her face, and now I can’t look at the picture I have. What am I supposed to do?”

 

“Where is the picture of your mom?” Keith asked, before Lance could say anything else. Lance touched his hip and felt around for his pocket. When he found it, he slipped his fingers in and dug out a wrinkly photograph.

 

“I always have it with me when we go into battle. It’s like she’s…there. Pushing me to go on.” He said shakily, holding it out. Keith took the photo in his hands and looked it over.  
It was Lance’s mother and father. His mother was a short woman with reddish hair and an apron tied around her waist. His father was a tall, thin man with a killer smile. Keith smiled just looking at the picture. Lance was a perfect mix of the two. 

 

“Well…” Keith hesitated for a moment, then took a deep breath. “She has a mess of curly, reddish hair that stops at her shoulders. Her eyes are beautifully bright and blue, just like yours. Her smile is so genuine and beautiful. She has laugh lines, and they’re special and show who she is. She’s a hard worker. She looks jolly and caring, but also like she could stop you from doing something bad with just a look.” Lance laughed at that, sniffling and wiping his face.

 

“¡Hijo, pon eso antes de que te haga!” He said in a shrill, scolding voice, making Keith laugh.

 

“She looks like…such a strong woman.” He said, looking back down at the photo.

 

“She is.” Lance answered, a single tear falling down his cheek. “Thank you, Keith. It’s like I can see her.” Keith put his hand over Lance’s and kissed his cheek gently.

 

“Lance, I will tell you what every little thing looks like. Whenever you want me to. I don’t care if it’s a piece of paper. I will tell you what it looks like.” He said seriously. Lance laughed in a sort of bittersweet tone.

 

“Prepare to be annoyed, because I’m not taking that offer lightly.” Lance said, running a hand through his hair. Keith pulled him into a kiss, holding his head in place at his lips. He could get addicted to the feeling of Lance’s lips against his own. It was electrifying, and he wished he never had to back away. He wasn’t sure how long they stayed still like that, but it felt like forever.

 

“Lance, I love you…” Keith said after they finally broke apart. “I will do whatever it takes to protect you and make you feel loved. I promise.”

 

“I know you will, Keith. Thank you.” Lance responded.

 

Then they kissed again, and fell back on the bed together, wrapped in each other’s arms. Keith melted into the feeling and couldn’t even think about the terrible things of the past few days. All he could think about was Lance, and how he could finally be open about his feelings with him. They didn’t have to fight anymore. They could finally be what they were meant to be. Teammates. Friends. Lovers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Is this slow burn enough? I have no idea, but let the Klance shippers scream.
> 
> Also, this chapter was supposed to be more angsty than it was(?)
> 
> ALL ABOARD THE KLANCE TRAIN TOOT TOOT
> 
> Spanish translation: "Son, put that down before I make you!"


	14. Chapter 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A Bad Night Part 2

Hunk lifted Pidge up as they walked down the hall. She was still in so much pain, and he wanted to get her to her room as fast as possible. She squeaked a little as he swept her legs up, but didn’t really protest. He looked down at her tear stained face and bit his lip.

 

“You okay?” He asked, opening her door. She was so tense in his arms.

 

“It’s, uh, it’s getting better…” She whispered shakily. Hunk didn’t like that voice. It was so broken, and not like Pidge at all. He set her down on her bed, and she immediately laid on her right side and curled up. Hunk looked at her, wishing he could do something. He looked over at the door to her bathroom and got an idea.

 

“Pidge, can I go into your bathroom?” He asked, fidgeting in place a bit. She furrowed her brows and let out a small laugh.

 

“Yeah…you don’t need to ask…” She said, then curled further into herself. Her face scrunched in pain, and Hunk had to look away. Seeing her in so much pain seemed to be causing him pain.

 

He walked into her bathroom and opened up the cabinet under the sink. There were stacks of towels, hand towels, and wash rags. He grabbed one of the hand towels and turned on the water. Altean sinks had extreme temperatures, and Hunk was thankful for that in this situation. He made it as cold as he could stand it and placed the towel under the running water. Once it was soaked, he rung it out a few times, then walked back out. He sat down next to Pidge and tapped her side, and she looked up at him.

 

“This might help.” He said, showing her the damp towel. She nodded and rested her head on his knee. Hunk hesitated for a second, then gently pressed the towel to Pidge’s shoulder. She immediately tensed up and sucked air in through her teeth. Hunk took the towel away. “Sorry, no good?”

 

“N-no, it’s okay…Just…don’t press too hard…” She choked out, her eyes shut tight. Hunk took a deep breath and pressed it back down, with less force this time. Pidge stayed tense for a minute, then started to relax a bit.

 

“Is it working?” Hunk asked, tentatively pushing her bangs out of her face. She gave him a small smile, and he could feel his heart jump.

 

“It’s…sort of just numbing it…but that’s making me feel a bit better…” She said with a small huff.

 

“That’s good.” He responded, smiling at her a little. She laughed and wiped her cheeks with the back of her hand.

 

“At least now I won’t have to worry about having kids.” She said softly with a smile. Hunk gave her a confused look.

 

“What?”

 

“They say childbirth is the most painful thing a human can experience, but I think they’re wrong. I think it’s having your arm blown off.” Pidge said, smiling a little wider. Hunk smiled back, still a little confused.

 

“I didn’t really take you as the kind of person to want to have kids.” He said with a small laugh.

 

“Of course I do. I’m a girl.” Pidge said, sitting up a little. Hunk took the hand towel away.

 

“Not all girls want to have kids.” He said, raising a brow. Pidge laughed gently, then her face twitched a little as pain went through her.

 

“Okay, most girls. It’s kind of programmed into our bodies.” She said. Hunk rolled his eyes.

 

“Neither of my moms ever actually gave birth.” He said with a grin. The shocked look on Pidge’s face was priceless.

 

“Moms? You have two moms?” She asked. Hunk nodded.

 

“Yeah, I was adopted. So was my little sister.” He said with a smile. Pidge smiled and leaned forward a bit. As she did, she pushed her shoulders forward subconsciously.  
Hunk watched her smile fade and her face contort in pain. She let out a cry of pain before slapping her hand over her mouth. Hunk gasped and pulled her forward. He pulled her so she was lying against his stomach, facing away from him, and replaced the cold towel on her shoulder. She shuddered in pain and exhaled slowly.

 

“I-I don’t…really know anything about your family.” She said in that shaky, broken voice. Hunk rubbed her arm comfortingly.

 

“You okay?” He asked. “Just try to stay still.” Pidge shook her head weakly.

 

“I’m curious…about your family.” She said, a shiver of pain rippling through her body.

 

“Is that proper conversation right now?” Hunk asked, adjusting the towel a bit. Pidge exhaled a laugh.

 

“I’m okay… Tell me about your family. I’d like to know…” She said, tilting her head back to look at him. She looked so pained, but there was a smile on her face.

 

“Okay.” Hunk said after a moment. “Well, one of my moms is from the Philippines, and the other is from South Africa. Their names are Anya and Natasha. They met in college and have been in love ever since. When they got married, Anya’s mom wanted her to wear a traditional Asian wedding gown and Natasha to wear a tuxedo. They both wore really bright, vibrant ball gowns. Seriously, their wedding pictures look like Mardi Gras.” Pidge laughed at that. “My biological parents put me up for adoption when I was a newborn, and my moms adopted me when I was two weeks old. They made me into who I am today.” Hunk said with a small smile.

 

“Did they teach you how to cook?” Pidge asked. Hunk laughed a little.

 

“Oh please, neither of them can cook at all. When I was eight, I picked up a cookbook and just started. I wanted to eat something other than burnt chicken and take out.” Pidge laughed again. “Then, when I was ten, they asked me to make a cake for the day they brought my little sister home. She was only a month old. My moms ended up shoving the cake in each other’s faces. And mine. They even put some icing on my sister’s nose and she ended up crying.”

 

“What’s your sister’s name?” Pidge asked.

 

“Daysha. Her biological parents named her, but they had to give her up because their house was seized.” Hunk explained. He turned the towel, making sure the colder side was on her at all times. She trembled as a wave of pain wracked her body, letting out a small whimper.

 

“Y-you’re family sounds…beautiful…” She said with a small hum. “Mine is just…The Brady Bunch, but ginger…and smaller.”

 

“You’re a ginger?” Hunk asked, surprised. He looked down, and noticed that her hair was sort of red. He wasn’t sure how he didn’t notice it before.

 

“Yeah.” She said, trembling again. “It shows more in my brother…he’s covered in freckles…and his hair is more red than mine.” Her entire body tensed for a minute, then relaxed again.

 

“I think we’ve talked too much, try to get some rest. I can tell you’re in pain.” Hunk said, playing with a small lock of her hair.

 

Within minutes, Pidge’s breathing steadied out and she seemed to be asleep. Hunk looked down at her face and sighed. She looked beautiful, even though her face was still bright red from crying. Her eyelashes cast shadows on her cheekbones and the sight alone made Hunk’s heart flutter. He was in deep, and it was going to get him in trouble. He just had to say it out loud.

 

“I have a humongous crush on you.” He breathed out, leaning his head back. “It’s so bad. I don’t know what to do, because I know you don’t feel the same way.”

 

“You’re wrong.” Pidge’s voice made Hunk jump. He looked down to see her caramel eyes staring back up at him. He felt his face heat up.

 

“You…weren’t supposed to hear that.” He said shakily. She smiled softly.

 

“Well, I’m glad I did.” She said. “You’re wrong, I do feel the same way.”

 

“So…what now?” Hunk asked, putting the hand towel down. He was shaking with nervousness. Pidge yawned, but she was blushing. She looked absolutely exhausted, and Hunk knew it was from all the pain she was feeling.

 

“Right now, I’m tired, and you’re very comfortable. So, I’m going to sleep.” She smiled at him. “Can we sort it out tomorrow?”

 

Hunk nodded, but on the inside, he was terrified. And happy. And confused. Pidge went to sleep after a few minutes, leaving Hunk alone in the room. He was left with his crazy emotions. He was happy that he found out that his feelings were returned, but he wasn’t sure she wanted to be with him. He tried to put it aside and get some sleep, but he kept waking up. He had a feeling it was going to be a long night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, not as angsty as planned. I tried to make this one longer. Sorry to the people who don't ship Hidge, but it's my favorite. Also, I headcanon that Pidge and her brother are gingers, since her hair looks sort of reddish in the show. And that Hunk has two moms and a little sister. :)
> 
> Also I wrote half of this drunk so I'm sorry if it sucks :P


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A Bad Night Part 3

Shiro stood alone in the foyer of the castle. The other paladins had gone their separate ways, and he was left by himself in the emptiness. He glanced down a hallway to his left, and decided to take it. It led to the one person he needed.

 

Shiro stood in front of Allura’s bedroom door, not knowing whether to knock or walk away. Shadows kept dancing in the edges of his vision. They looked like the Galra soldiers that held him captive in the past. One of them darted too close, and Shiro knocked hard on the door, needing to escape. Allura opened the door after a few seconds, and the shadows faded away.

 

“Shiro?” She said worriedly. She was wearing a knee length night gown in a baby pink color. Her hair was wet and falling gently at her shoulders, framing her face. She looked radiant.

 

“Allura, can I come in?” He asked. She nodded and stepped aside, and Shiro walked in and sat on her bed.

 

Shiro and Allura had been seeing each other in secret for over a month now. Neither of them really knew how to tell the others, so they just kept it secret. Allura was the perfect match for Shiro. She was able to keep him calm during any episodes, and he was able to convince her to relax when she was pushing herself too hard. She sat down next to him and touched his shoulder.

 

“What’s wrong?” She asked, squeezing a little. Shiro put his head in his hands.

 

“I failed my teammates.” He said slowly. “They’ve fallen apart, and it’s all my fault.”

 

“Shiro, none of this is your fault.” Allura said, leaning against him. “You have to understand that.”

 

“They are suffering and I couldn’t protect them.” Shiro said, side-glancing at Allura. She looked so beautiful and sympathetic.

 

“Shiro, you can’t protect them all the time. You’re a leader, not a body guard. It was necessary for the mission for the team to be separated. Two of them got hurt, and it wasn’t because of you.” Allura said petting his hair. Shiro sighed and laid down, resting his head in her lap.

 

“They’re…just kids.” Shiro said, his voice breaking a little. “Just kids! I don’t think I ever fully realized how dangerous being a paladin really was until now.”

 

“It’s a dangerous thing to do. But it’s their choice. Pidge and Lance got hurt, it’s true. But their main concern seems to be still being able to be paladins.”

 

“You have a point.”

 

“Of course I do.” Allura said. She leaned down and kissed Shiro’s head. Shiro sighed.

 

“Lance is just…so heartbroken over this. And Pidge is in so much pain, it’s killing me. I just want to help them. Hunk obviously isn’t doing too well either. And I think Keith is sick.”

 

“Do you think he would hide that from the team?” Allura asked. Shiro shrugged.

 

“I’m not sure. He doesn’t like appearing weak. He never has. But he hasn’t been looking very good for the past few days.” He said. Allura hummed in thought.

 

“Try asking him about it.” She said. “But I’m worried about you right now. Your anxiety has been getting to you today.” Shiro scoffed. “I’m serious. I can tell.” Shiro sat up and looked directly at Allura so their foreheads were almost touching.

 

“You’re right. I…feel horrible…” He said, pressing their foreheads together. He could feel some tears welling up behind his eyes. “I’m seeing those shadows again…” Allura hummed gently.

 

“You need to take it easy on yourself. I’m worried about you.” She kissed him gently, placing her hand on the back of his neck. He melted into the kiss and felt a lot more relaxed than before. He pulled Allura down onto the bed and wrapped his arms around her. Allura made a small noise as he pulled away.

 

“Just having you here makes me feel better.” He said softly. Allura smiled. 

 

“I’m glad I can help.” She said, trailing a finger down his chest. He smiled and gently grabbed her hand, then froze.

 

The shadows were back, and greater in number. Sendak was standing in the corners of Shiro’s vision, and he quickly turned to defend Allura. But he was gone. He stood up and turned around in circles, looking for the intruder. His ears were ringing loudly, and his nerves were shot. His right hand glowed bright pink suddenly, almost out of his own volition. Something grabbed his other arm tightly, and he whipped around to attack it. He was stopped when he saw the eyes. It was Allura.

 

“Shiro! It’s okay, calm down.” She shouted, standing up. Shiro exhaled slowly, trying to calm himself. Allura placed her hands on either side of his face, running her thumb gently across his scar. Shiro touched her hands and leaned his head back.

 

“I’m sorry.” He said shakily. He could still see him, just standing in the corner. He stared, and he didn’t go away.

 

“Shiro, it’s not real. Whatever you’re seeing, it’s not real.” Allura said. He looked back down at her. He couldn’t understand how she couldn’t see him just standing there. He was smirking at Shiro, but other than that, he was unmoving.

 

“He’s there, Allura, don’t you see him?” He said, pointing to the corner. Allura looked over and sighed.

 

“Who is it, Shiro?” She asked gently. Shiro looked back at her.

 

“It’s Sendak.” He said softly. Saying it out loud made him realize it wasn’t real. He released Sendak into space during a previous freak out. He blinked a few times, and he was gone. He turned his attention back to Allura and sighed. “I’m sorry. I don’t know what’s wrong with me.” Allura shook her head.

 

“You’ve been so stressed the past few days. It’s getting to you.” She said, pulling him back down onto the bed. He laid down this time instead of sitting.

 

Allura settled down next to him and sighed. Shiro wrapped his arms around her waist and let a few tears fall down his cheeks. He buried his face in her neck and inhaled her scent, starting to drift into a more comfortable state of mind. Allura hummed an old Altean song as she hugged his head. The sound and the feel of her body against his lulled him into comfort and relaxation. He began to gently kiss her neck and collar bone, slowly and passionately, earning a small noise from his partner. He carefully moved down to nuzzle his face in her breasts, squeezing her tighter against him. She stopped humming and he looked up. She was looking down at him, face blank and peaceful.

 

“What is it?” He asked. She smiled a little.

 

“I love you, Shiro.” Shiro smiled and kissed her gently.

 

“I love you too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is horrible I am so bad at writing Shallura I'm so sorry.
> 
> Also, I thought about having some smut in this chapter, but I decided to keep it romantic(?)


	16. Chapter 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sick.

When Keith woke up, he felt horrible. Not only was Lance sleeping on his arm, causing it to ache, but his jaw hurt. He cracked his neck a little and opened his mouth a few times to try to get the ache to go away. The pain was coming from the inside of his mouth, just under his teeth. He put a hand over his mouth and groaned a little, causing Lance to stir.

 

“Keith?” He asked in a husky, sleepy voice. He sat up, finally getting off Keith’s arm. “What time is it?”

 

“I dunno.” Keith answered, sitting up as well. His head swirled as he moved. Lance just shrugged and face planted into his pillow.

 

“Whatever, I’m not leaving this room ever again.” He said, stifled by the fabric. Keith cocked his head, a little worried.

 

“What? Why not?” He asked, touching Lance’s shoulder. Lance stayed silent for a moment, then turned his head. His foggy eyes darted around a little, then he closed them.

 

“What’s the point? I…just need some time.” He whispered. Keith sighed and did the only thing he could think to do. He kissed Lance’s cheek. Lance offered a small half smile in appreciation, but it faded away quickly. Keith’s stomach growled, and he figured he had to get food.

 

“Lance, I’m going to go get some breakfast. Come with me.” He said, nudging the blue paladin. Lance just shook his head.

 

“You go. I’m staying here. I just said I don’t want to leave.” He snapped. Keith sighed. He felt as though he probably shouldn’t leave Lance alone, since he seemed to be in a depression.

 

Keith stood up and walked over to the door. He opened it and peeked his head out the door. The hallway was empty and quiet, and Keith thought for a brief moment about him and Lance being the last ones left in the castle. He shook the thought from his mind as he heard a door open. He looked to his left and saw Hunk stepping out of Pidge’s room, looking absolutely exhausted. Keith waved him over.

 

“Hunk, you don’t look so good.” He said, leaning against the open door. Hunk leaned against the wall across from him.

 

“Neither do you. Are you sick or something?” He said slowly. Keith shrugged.

 

“Or something.” Keith said, trying to signal to Hunk that he didn’t want to talk about it. “Listen, I’m going to go get some breakfast, but I don’t want to leave Lance alone. Can you stay with him?” Hunk nodded.

 

“Yeah, I understand. I know how to help him when he’s depressed, more or less.” He said, standing up straight. Keith stepped aside to let Hunk inside.

 

“How’s Pidge?” He asked, stepping into the hallway. Hunk stopped in the doorway with a heavy sigh.

 

“Not in as much pain, but she’s exhausted. I think she’s going to try to take it easy today.” He muttered, crossing his arms. Keith scoffed.

 

“Pidge? Take it easy?” He asked skeptically. Hunk smiled a little. 

 

“Yeah, we’ll see.” He said with a laugh.

 

Keith headed down the hallway in a daze. His stomach was growling, but that was the least of his worries. His jaw and gums felt like they were on fire, and he wasn’t entirely sure what kind of illness could make that happen. His throat was also raw from all the coughing he was doing the previous day. He got to the kitchen and suddenly felt very hot. He opened the refrigerator and sighed in relief as cold air rushed over his body.

 

“Keith?” A familiar voice asked from behind him. Keith turned around and saw Shiro, looking tired. Everyone was looking tired today.

 

“Hey, Shiro.” He said, rolling his shoulders back. He started to turn around, but Shiro grabbed his wrist.

 

“You don’t look good at all.” He said, stepping a little closer.

 

“Neither do you.” Keith retorted, taking a little half-step back.

 

“Keith, are you sick?” He asked. Keith rolled his eyes and leaned against the fridge.

 

“Maybe a little bit. I’m a little warm, but who cares?” He said. “I’m more worried about Lance and Pidge. I can take care of myself.” Shiro crossed his arms.

 

“Keith, I know you’re worried, but you have to take care of yourself.” Keith rolled his eyes. He crossed the kitchen to get a bowl from the cabinet. “Don’t ignore me.”

 

Keith whipped around to say something, but was suddenly seeing two Shiros instead of one. He put his arms out to try to steady himself, but his legs gave out and he was falling into Shiro’s chest. His vision was starting to go black.

 

“Keith!” Shiro exclaimed, holding him to his chest so he didn’t fall. Keith blinked slowly and looked up.

 

“Fuck…” He whispered as the two Shiros faded back into one. He tried to stand back up straight, but Shiro held him in place.

 

“Okay, come on, you’re going to your room to lay down.” Shiro said. Keith wanted to protest, but Shiro was right. He gripped Shiro’s arms tightly and planted his feet.

 

“I’m hungry…” He muttered. Shiro rubbed his shoulders comfortingly.

 

“I’ll bring you some food, but you need to lay down. You may even need to get in a pod.” He said, starting to walk with him. 

 

Keith was pretty confused. He never got sick, and when he did, it wasn’t like this. He couldn’t place a reason for his jaw to be hurting so bad. He rubbed it as they walked, and Shiro looked down at him.

 

“What’s up?” He asked, catching Keith as he stumbled. Keith groaned.

 

“My jaw.” He answered. “It hurts. A lot.” Shiro raised a brow.

 

“Your jaw?” He asked, obviously confused. Keith nodded. Shiro hummed in thought.

 

They reached Keith’s room within a few minutes, and Shiro practically dropped Keith on his bed. Keith touched the sheets under his fingers, then shot up quickly. He groaned ass his head spun again. He needed Lance. Lance needed him. Shiro put a hand on his chest and pressed him back down.

 

“Down.” He said softly. Keith laid back down with a growl.

 

“Lance. Just take me to Lance’s room.” Shiro looked at him, a little confused.

 

“What?”

 

“I’ll explain later, but please.” Keith said, starting to sit up again. Shiro held his hand out to keep him down.

 

“Okay, okay, I’ll just bring him in here, okay? Just relax.” He said urgently. Keith nodded. Shiro left, and Keith was left alone.

 

He sat up and leaned against the wall, still feeling very dizzy. He coughed into his hand and groaned. He had hoped the cough was gone, but it felt worse than yesterday. It scraped against his throat, like the air had millions of spikes. He thought he could have a cold, but that didn’t explain his jaw hurting. Maybe strep throat, but can you even get that in space? The door opened and Lance stepped in, being guided by Shiro. Hunk trailed behind. Lance tore away from Shiro and ran forward, pretty much falling on top of Keith.

 

“Are you okay? Shiro said you fainted!” He exclaimed, grabbing Keith’s arms. Keith breathed out a laugh.

 

“Calm down, I’m okay.” He said, gently rubbing Lance’s shoulders. He looked over at Shiro and Hunk, a little embarrassed. Shiro nodded silently and stepped out, motioning for Hunk to follow. They left and the door closed behind them.

 

“Keith, you’re sick, aren’t you?” Lance asked, snuggling into Keith’s chest.

 

“It seems that way.” Keith answered. He gently kissed Lance’s head. “But don’t worry, it’s just a cold or something.”

 

“Colds can be serious. And you fainted.”

 

“I didn’t faint. I almost fainted.” He defended. Lance growled and buried his face in Keith’s chest. Keith gently pet his hair and leaned his head against the wall. He started to drift off, even though he wasn’t that tired. He figured it was because he was sick.

 

When he was a kid, he always used to sleep off his illnesses. His dad never believed in getting sick. Sure, he would make sure Keith was hydrated and fed when he was sick, but medicine was never in their household. He sighed and continued to scratch at Lance’s scalp gently, and the other boy hummed happily. Keith could stay in this position forever.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had no idea how to end this chapter.


	17. Chapter 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Memory.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is a long one.

Pidge woke up slowly, feeling sore and cold. She was curled in a ball on her bed with the blankets shoved to the floor and a pillow at her feet. She sat up and blinked slowly, trying to recall the previous night. She remembered the lions coming back on, and then she remembered the pain that had led her back to her room. She spotted a damp hand towel on the floor and tilted her head to the side.

 

Hunk?

 

Pidge looked around, trying to find the yellow paladin, but he wasn’t there. She could’ve sworn he was there with her. She remembered falling asleep laying on his stomach and chest. But he wasn’t in the room anymore. She shifted slowly, making sure not to move her left shoulder too much, and stood up.

 

Everything still felt like a dream, and she was getting a little tired of it. She tried pinching the bridge of her nose and rubbing one of her temples, but her head still felt fuzzy. She groaned and walked into her bathroom. She could only see her face in the mirror, and the face she saw she barely recognized. She was paler than normal, and she had dark bags under her eyes. She sighed and turned on the sink, tearing her eyes away from her dead reflection. She splashed some water on her face and grabbed a dry hand towel from under the sink. Drying her face was a little more difficult with only one hand, but she managed to do it. She decided that she wanted to shower and let her wound breathe, and grabbed a bigger towel.

 

She stepped out into the hallway, and immediately saw Hunk and Shiro walking away from…Keith’s room? Or maybe it was Lance’s. She shook her head and decided not to think about it.

 

“Hey, guys.” She called, and they turned around. Hunk walked over to her, and Shiro soon joined him.

 

“Pidge, I thought you were just going to rest today?” Hunk said softly. Pidge cocked her head to the side.

 

“When did I say that?” She asked.

 

“When I got up. I guess it’s pretty normal that you wouldn’t remember that. You went right back to sleep.” Oh.

 

“How are you feeling?” Shiro asked. Pidge bit the inside of her lip and looked at her feet. She was getting tired of that question.

 

“Fine.” She answered quickly. “What were you guys doing in…” She trailed off, looking at the door they had come from. Her mind raced as she tried to remember the order of the rooms, but she couldn’t quite figure it out. “Lance’s…room?” She finished slowly, looking back up at them for confirmation. Shiro raised a brow at her.

 

“Keith’s room, actually.” He corrected, and Pidge blushed from embarrassment. “He’s sick. He nearly passed out in the kitchen, and I was bringing him back to his room.”

 

“And I was leading Lance in there.” Hunk added. Pidge hummed in thought.

 

“Why?” She asked, gripping her towel a little tighter.

 

“They don’t want to be separated. I don’t know why.” Shiro answered. There were a few beats of uncomfortable silence before Pidge started walking again.

 

“Well, I’m going to take a shower.” She said, brushing past the two. Shiro seemed to start after her, but stopped.

 

“Be sure the water isn’t too hot, it could burn your wound.” He said. Pidge kept walking.

 

“I can take care of myself.” She said, but she wasn’t sure he heard her.

 

She walked into the shower room and set her towel down. It was a very large room with five shower heads lining the far wall. There were small walls in between each head, but they weren’t very tall. They only came up to Pidge’s hips. She and the other paladins sometimes all showered at the same time, but not very often. It didn’t really bother her that much, and it didn’t bother them either. Lance had even said it was a form of bonding. No secrets between teammates. Pidge just didn’t really care. Not after she told them she was a girl.

 

She stepped up to the middle shower head and slid her shorts and underwear off. She draped them over the small wall, and looked down at her shirt. She could already tell this was going to be a struggle. She gripped the bottom of it and pulled up, but it got caught on her arm. She tried the right side, but her arm was just too short for it to get completely off. She growled in frustration and pulled the left side up, finally getting the tank top over her head. She put it with her shorts and huffed. The next layer was all the gauze and bandages. She tore at them for a few minutes until she finally got them all off. They pooled around her feet, and she was left with only her sports bra on. Surprisingly, that was less of a struggle than her shirt, now that she knew what to do. She wanted to look at her left shoulder, but she couldn’t quite work up the courage. She turned on the water and sighed.

 

The warm water fell over her face and down her body, causing her to relax a little bit. She sighed slowly, closing her eyes and tilting her head up. It was so nice, just to stand there and feel the warmth. The water fell against her now open wound, causing ripples of pain to shoot through her body, but she could overlook that for the comfort she was feeling. She ran her hand through her hair and eyed the shampoo. Now she had another problem. She thought for a moment, then grabbed the shampoo bottle and opened it. She squeezed the shampoo right onto her head, even though she had no idea how much she was using. She set the bottle back down on the ledge as the shampoo started to drip down her head in all directions. She had to slowly scrub it into her head as to not bother her shoulder. After scrubbing it all in, she stuck her head back under the water.

 

As the soap ran down her body, Pidge started to feel a little less foggy. Her mind felt like it was clearing, even though the far reaches of her memory still seemed untouchable. She tried to think about her family again. She lived with her mother and father, and she had a sibling. A brother? She thought so. But was he younger or older? She remembered feeling like the baby of the family, so she assumed older. Something was different about her brother and father though. Something bad. She furrowed her brows in thought. What happened to them?

 

She shook her head and turned off the shower with a small groan of frustration. She grabbed her towel and started to wrap it around herself, until she realized she couldn’t do that anymore. She opted to just hold it in front of herself instead. She glanced over at a mirror on the wall to her right. It was a full body mirror, unlike the one in her bathroom. She stepped up to it and moved the towel out of the way.

 

The first thing she noticed was a very large bruise in the center of her chest and over her solar plexus. She gasped at the sight of it, as she had no idea it was even there. It was very dark purple with hints of yellow at the edges. She touched it, and pain dispersed throughout its circumference. She didn’t react to it much since she was getting used to a more intense pain.

 

She finally worked up the courage to look at her shoulder wound. She turned to the side and stared, starting to feel uneasy. The skin on and around it was charred and black, then faded out into burns that covered her skin down to her hip and up to her jaw. It looked like her skin was folded and melted in place, causing her to shudder. She followed the outline of charred skin with her finger, and found that it looked like a hand. Pidge suddenly felt sick as what her teammates were saying earlier were coming back to her. She died. Twice. And there was a hand print over her wound. She thought about her teammates struggling to keep her alive, and started to cry. She was overwhelmed, and seeing her reflection sent her over the edge. This was real. She had lost her arm, and it wasn’t coming back.

 

She fell to her knees as she started to sob, wrapping her towel around herself. She had died on that planet, and she was beginning to wonder if maybe she wasn’t revived. Maybe she was dead and her teammates were taking her back to her mother and father on Earth. And…brother? She couldn’t remember. Wasn’t something wrong with her father? And her sibling? Was her sibling a boy or a girl? Younger or older?

 

She wanted to scream. She couldn’t remember anything. She couldn’t remember the members of her family. She couldn’t remember the order of the rooms in the castle. She couldn’t remember why she went to the Garrison. She couldn’t remember anything. She pulled at her wet hair with a low growl. Getting up off her knees, Pidge finally started to pull herself together. She felt a little better after crying. She hadn’t cried since this happened, other than in pain.

 

Pidge walked back over to the shower where her clothes were, and put them back on. She finally felt ready to face everyone, whether they were going to pity her or not. She shook her head a couple times, trying to shake the loose water out, and breathed out. She stood in front of the mirror for a second, noticing her face was red and her eyes were puffy, then headed out of the shower room. And ran right into Hunk.

 

“Ah! Oh, hey, Hunk.” She said with a small laugh. Hunk smiled at her, sweet as always.

 

“Sorry, I was coming to see if you were okay. Were you crying?” He asked, leaning down a little. Pidge nodded.

 

“Uh, yes. But I feel much better now.” She said. Hunk hummed.

 

“Well, as long as you feel okay.” He said. Pidge suddenly remembered the conversation she’d had with him the previous night, and turned beet red. “What is it?”

 

“N-nothing, um, just a little…warm.” She shook her head. Curse her paleness, giving away her emotions. Hunk seemed to be blushing too.

 

“Hey, so, about last night.” He started, causing Pidge to turn redder. “If you want to…forget about it…we can.” He seemed uncomfortable. Pidge gasped a little, not wanting to lose him now.

 

“Why would I want to forget it?” She asked. She’d been forgetting a lot of things lately. “That would just mean we’d go back to pining over each other, and that’s no fun.” Hunk laughed at that, and some of the awkwardness faded.

 

“So, now what?” He asked. Pidge sighed softly. She wasn’t entirely sure what to do.

 

“Hunk, I really like you. I’m just worried. We’re in the middle of a war. Should we be distracted by…a relationship?” She said, twirling a strand of wet hair in her fingers.

 

“You’re right.” Hunk said, looking a little rejected. Pidge didn’t want this.

 

“How about we stay focused on the war, but focus on…us in our down time?” She offered, feeling a little weird. She’d never been in a relationship before, but she’d never felt this way about anyone either. Hunk smiled at her.

 

“Deal.” He said. Pidge relaxed a bit. She felt like she could do anything. Even fight.

 

“Do you want to spar?” She asked, and Hunk looked a little surprised.

 

“Pidge, you’re badly injured. You can’t be fighting right now.” He said. Pidge just rolled her eyes.

 

“We’re in a war, Hunk. I don’t have time to be injured.” She retorted. “I’ll get someone else to do it. Let’s see…I know Shiro won’t; he’s more of a worry worm than you.”

 

“True.”

 

“Keith is sick, I don’t want to bother him.” She tapped her finger against her cheek in thought. “I know, I’ll get Lance to spar with me! It’ll make him feel better too.” She brushed past Hunk and headed for Keith’s room, where she knew Lance was.

 

“Woah, hold on. Lance is really depressed right now. Maybe we should leave him alone.” Hunk said, following her. Pidge kept going and scoffed.

 

“If he’s depressed, sparring with me will make him feel better!” She said, stopping at the doors. She looked between all the doors and started to slowly step towards one.

 

“That’s my room. Keith’s is two over.” Hunk said from behind her. He sounded confused. Pidge bit her lip and knocked on Keith’s door.

 

“What?” Lance called from inside. Pidge opened to door and stepped inside, Hunk behind her.

 

“Hey.” She said, bouncing on her toes. Lance was nuzzled into Keith’s chest, who was sleeping. He turned his head ever so slightly at the sound of her voice.

 

“Pidge?” He asked. Pidge noticed his eyes were foggy and half-lidded. He was getting used to the blindness, as his eyes weren’t darting around or wide anymore. “What are you doing in here?” He sounded defensive.

 

“I was…wondering if you wanted to spar with me. Since we’re both—“

 

“Since we’re both weak?” He interrupted. That wasn’t what Pidge was going to say, but he was right.

 

“I mean, sure.” She said. Lance huffed. He slowly got off of Keith as to not wake him, then felt for the floor with his feet.

 

“Are you insane?” He asked, standing straight up. He was facing her almost completely. Pidge quirked a brow.

 

“What do you mean?”

 

“Why would either of us want to spar? Don’t you get that we’re damaged goods now?” He practically snapped at her.

 

“Lance.” Hunk said, with warning in his tone. Pidge had never seen Lance like this, not even in their days at the Garrison.

 

“We’re not damaged.” Pidge defended, starting to feel a little angry. She wanted to do something to try to feel alive again. After showering and finally starting to feel better, Lance was dragging her back down. 

 

“Pidge, come on. We’re not even useful as paladins anymore.” 

 

“That’s not true! Blue let you see through her, you can still pilot.” She tried. Lance growled and narrowed his eyes.

 

“Shut up. We’ll be replaced as soon as our lions find someone better.” He said, sitting back down on the bed. Pidge clenched her fist and planted her feet.

 

“What, so you’re just a quitter now?” She asked. Hunk reached his hand out to her, but quickly retracted it. Lance just shook his head. “Seriously, Lance, get off your ass and stop feeling sorry for yourself! You’ll never be a paladin again if you give up so quickly!” Her voice was slowly increasing in volume. Lance stood up again, obviously angered.

 

“You’re just a child!” He growled, more bite in his voice than Pidge had ever heard. “You have no idea what you’re talking about, just go away!”

 

“No, I’m not going to let you just sit here and wallow in your own self pity!”

 

“Why not? I just want to go home now that I’m not needed!” Lance took a step closer to her, and Pidge saw Keith wake up out of the corner of her eye. Shiro also entered around the same time, obviously concerned about the yelling. Pidge took a deep breath.

 

“A true paladin would never give up on themselves! Suck it up, Lance! Get off your ass and do something to prove yourself worthy as a p—“ A loud smack accompanied by a sharp sting on her cheek interrupted her. She froze for a moment, then glanced up at Lance. He looked so angry, but he was crying.

 

“Lance!” Shiro scolded, putting his arm between him and Pidge. Hunk touched Pidge’s arm and started to pull her back, but she shook him off. Keith stood up and wrapped his arms around Lance’s waist, and Lance began to relax a little.

 

“Pidge, you wanted a fight. You got one.” He said darkly. Pidge touched her stinging cheek, and began to laugh.

 

“I knew I just had to get you fired up.” She said, while Shiro looked at her absolutely bewildered. “You didn’t have to see me to hit me. Do it again.”

 

“With pleasure.”

 

He was smiling.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys! Sorry, I know it's been almost a week, but hopefully this chapter makes up for it! I made it longer, since I felt bad for the last few sucking so much haha. So I hope you enjoy!
> 
> On another note, I have started work on another Voltron fic, and it is a dance AU(I know people love those). I probably won't start posting it until I'm finished with this one, but this one is nearing its end. Keep an eye out!


	18. Chapter 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Teeth

The silence was short lived. Lance was tearing himself from Keith’s arms within seconds, stomping after Pidge, who was already in the hallway. Shiro tried to grab Lance’s wrist, but he was moving to quickly. Hunk followed them, yelling at them to stop. Keith started to follow after, but Shiro caught him.

 

“No.” He said, his voice angrier than expected. “I got it covered. Relax.”

 

“You’re fucking crazy if you think I’m going to just lay in here while Pidge and Lance are trying to fight each other.” Keith said, tugging himself away from Shiro. He wavered a little and fell onto the bed, then rubbed his temples.

 

“I’ll handle it.” Shiro said. After he was sure Keith was going to stay, he left.

 

He jogged down the hall, feeling his blood pumping in his ears. His teammates were being too hotheaded for their own good, and now they were going to get hurt. He entered the training deck, to see Hunk standing between Pidge and Lance. He made eye contact with Shiro and mouthed ‘help me’ and Shiro jogged over.

 

“Guys, enough!” He shouted, a little louder than he meant. It made Pidge and Lance both visibly jump. “You’re teammates, you shouldn’t be fighting!”

 

“She started it!” Lance growled angrily. Pidge scoffed on the other side of Hunk.

 

“I’m going to finish it too!” She said cockily. Lance lunged forward a bit, stopped by Hunk’s palm. Shiro wrapped one arm around Lance and lifted him up. The boy started kicking his legs, hitting Shiro’s hip a few times.

 

“Put me down!” He yelled. Hunk relaxed a little, but still kept Pidge at a distance. The small girl growled and rolled her eyes.

 

“Shiro, put him down, let us spar!” She protested.

 

“Are you serious?” Hunk said, whipping around to her.

 

“No one else is taking us seriously! Who else are we supposed to fight?” She snapped back. Shiro froze for a moment, then let out a sigh and put Lance down. He still kept his arm wrapped around him.

 

“You’re not supposed to fight anyone.” He said, not masking the tiredness in his voice. Pidge seemed to relax a little, and she took a small step back. Lance stopped struggling too, and Hunk was looking at Shiro with concern decorating his features. He suddenly felt very exposed. “You two…you have to stop trying to take your anger out on each other, and figure out a way to talk about it, or deal with it.”

 

“No offense, Shiro, but you’re not a very good therapist.” Lance said, wiping his face. “How am I supposed to deal with suddenly being blind? How is Pidge supposed to deal with suddenly not having an arm?”

 

“We can’t just deal with that stuff.” Pidge said, looking a little more resigned than usual. Hunk put a hand on her back comfortingly.

 

“What you two need to realize is that your injuries, no matter how drastic, don’t define you as people.” He said, before Shiro could say anything. Shiro was a little surprised at the maturity he was showing.

 

“Hunk is right.” He said, releasing Lance. Lance stood still, looking a little disappointed. He crossed his arms over himself and sighed heavily. Shiro looked over at Pidge, who looked like she was pouting.

 

They both seemed to let go of their anger a little, but now they were just sad. Shiro relaxed a little, but was still worried about them. It was eerily silent. He saw Pidge relax, then Lance. Shiro felt a little relieved, and started to relax himself.

 

But it was short-lived.

 

A loud scream interrupted the silence, causing all four of them to jump. Shiro immediately recognized it to be Keith, and turned towards the sound. Lance gasped from next to him.

 

“Keith?” He said shakily. Shiro grabbed his hand and started toward the rooms again. Hunk and Pidge followed close behind. 

 

The four rushed down the hallway and Shiro forced the door open to Keith’s room. He stopped in the doorway as he saw Keith hunched over, back to the door. There were red stains on his white sheets, some in the shape of hand-prints.

 

“Oh my God.” Pidge whispered.

 

“What? What’s going on?” Lance asked frantically.

 

“Get out.” Keith mumbled. “All of you but Shiro. Leave.”

 

“What? No way!” Lance protested. Hunk grabbed Lance’s wrist and gently tugged him out.

 

“Come on, let’s go.” He said.

 

“I don’t want to.” Lance said worriedly. Pidge backed out slowly, grabbing Lance’s other hand.

 

“Get out!” Keith snapped. Lance’s face shifted to a dejected expression, and Shiro suddenly felt guilty. The door closed behind the trio, and Shiro was alone with Keith. 

 

He stepped forward and put his hand on Keith’s shoulder. The smaller boy whipped around, and Shiro gasped. There was blood dripping from his mouth. He was holding a small pile of teeth, and blood was pooled in the palm of his hand.

 

“Oh my God, Keith, what…?” He murmured, not really knowing what to do.

 

“I don’t know…” Keith mumbled. “My teeth started falling out.”

 

“Let me see.” Shiro said. He put his hand under Keith’s jaw and made him open his mouth. There was a lot of blood in his mouth, but he could see small, pointed objects poking through his gums. They looked like cat teeth.

 

“What is it?” Keith asked around Shiro’s fingers. Shiro let go of him and sighed.

 

“I don’t know, but it looks like more teeth. But they’re sharp. Like cat teeth.” He answered. “Come on, we should get you to a pod. It might help.”

 

“Yeah, okay.” Keith said softly, standing up.

 

Shiro wrapped his arm around Keith and helped him out of the room. They walked past Lance, Hunk, and Pidge, and Shiro held his finger to his lips. He wanted to make sure Hunk and Pidge didn’t say anything to alert Lance. Pidge bit her lip, but nodded. Shiro got Keith to a pod and put him in, hoping that this wouldn’t be anything serious.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow hey there, it's been a while. Is anyone still there? I'm sorry this chapter is so late. I had MAJOR writer's block with this one, so it isn't that good. I've also been mad busy with working and life. I fell into a bit of a depression. Anyway, I'm going to try to update again early September and actually focus on the next chapter. I hope you guys are still here and still reading!  
> -plvvsh


	19. Author's Note

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> UPDATE

Hey everyone! I know I promised a new chapter in early September and it's now October, and I am so sorry for that! I've had quite a few other projects I've been working on that have delayed the new chapter significantly. I've been at AWA this past weekend as well, which is when I planned to finish and upload the chapter. I can say that the chapter is halfway finished. I'm hoping I can give it some emotional pow for you guys. I'm going to try to finish and upload it this month, but I am a very very busy person and don't have a whole lot of time to write. I'll try to upload a chapter once a month from here on out. Sorry again! I'm so happy there are supporters of this fic and all the comments make me so happy!


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